To Love and Be Loved
by Kelly of the midnight dawn
Summary: [Established EO] All anyone wants from life is that sense of purpose, of belonging.  Elliot and Olivia help each other through some of the toughest times.  Drama, Romance, Angst, kids and psycotic killers abound.  Can they make it work?  Read to find out.
1. Chapter 1: Making it Work

**To Love and Be Loved**

**Chapter 1: Making It Work**

**Disclaimer: I do ****NOT**** own any of the SVU characters.**

**A/N: I am insane, there's no other way to describe what's going on here. I've got so many other stories to work on and that I've promised you guys I would work on. But I started writing this about a week ago and then last night I managed to knock out the first four chapters. I don't even know what's going on in this story but it will be very dramatic at times. I had a lot of fun writing it so I hope you guys have a lot of fun reading it.**

"I'm so exhausted," Olivia sighed as she pushed open the door of the apartment that she and Elliot shared. She dropped her bag on the end table closest to the door and collapsed on the couch. It had been a hellish day, chasing down leads in their latest case and coming up with only dead ends. Finally, Cragen had ordered them all to go home and get some rest. Olivia couldn't think of anything but burying herself in the warmth of the covers but the second her butt hit the couch, she knew there was no way she'd be getting up under her own power for at least two hours.

Elliot flopped down beside her "Me too," he attempted to stifle a yawn and failed miserably. He stretched his arms above his head "Wanna order a pizza?" he asked.

"I thought you were exhausted?" Olivia asked with a raise of her eyebrow and a small grin.

"And starving," Elliot amended, leaning even further into the cushions and closing his eyes "What a day," he murmured.

"You said it," Olivia agreed, reaching for the take out menu that they kept next to the phone. She looked at the fine print beneath the restaurant's logo "They close at eleven," she sighed in defeat; it was currently eleven thirty.

"I think we might have some left over pasta in the fridge," Elliot said, emitting a groan as he pulled his reluctant body into an upright position and went to investigate.

"Wasn't that from four nights ago?" Olivia asked skeptically "If there is any left, it's probably growing things."

Elliot let the refrigerator door fall closed and he leaned against it "Well it's not there anyway," he informed her "Nothing but orange juice, milk and beer."

Olivia through her head back and laughed humorlessly "Sounds delicious. When was the last time we had time to go grocery shopping?"

"Ages ago," Elliot sighed, throwing open the cabinet doors in search of some sort of sustenance. "Okay…" he said contemplatively "We have, a can of beans… a bag of chocolate chips… a box of crackers and a can of pineapple."

"When did we by chocolate chips?" Olivia asked, shifting her position on the couch so that she could watch Elliot's movements more closely. She had to admit that even though she was starving as well, Elliot's quest for dinner was a great source of amusement.

"I have no idea," Elliot answered her as he set the can of beans on the counter and moved on to the next cabinet. He opened it and laughed "We've got sugar packets," he said in triumph, removing the box and holding it high above his head as if it were the holy grail.

"Yay," Olivia muttered unenthusiastically from the couch.

Elliot closed the cabinet and, deciding that he would cook the beans and worry about the rest of this later, he reached for the electric can opener. He plugged it in and tried to use it but it didn't work. He groaned in frustration and banged his head against the counter.

"Are you okay?" Olivia asked as she pried herself from the couch and came into the kitchen to help him, only to find him leaning against the counter with his head buried in his hands.

"Can opener's broken," he mumbled in defeat "I'm too tired to deal with this."

Olivia rubbed his back "Me too," she whispered "Let's just go to bed and worry about this in the morning."

Elliot nodded and stood up, embracing Olivia as they made their way to the bedroom "We don't even have coffee," he said sleepily.

"I know," Olivia told him as she turned the covers down and slid in. She had used the last of the grounds that morning. "We'll get some tomorrow," she yawned, curling up on her side facing Elliot.

He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close "Promise?" he asked with a half smile as Olivia tucked her head into the crook of his neck.

"I promise," she whispered back as her eyes drifted closed "Good night Elliot."

"Good night Liv," he bent his head and kissed the crown of hers "I love you."

"Love you more," she replied, already starting to doze off.

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Olivia awoke the next morning to the sound of thunder. She looked out the window to see the gray gloom that hung over the city, punctuated every now and then by a bolt of lightening. She extracted herself from Elliot's sleeping form and padded into the bathroom to get ready for the day.

When she finished showering, she returned to the bedroom to find that Elliot was still sound asleep. She bent down and shook his shoulder lightly "Rise and shine," she smirked.

"But we don't have any coffee," he grumbled.

"Elliot Stabler," Olivia's attitude became one of feigned infuriation "If that's your only reason for getting out of bed in the morning than maybe I should just pack my things and leave right now."

Elliot rolled over and smiled sleepily at her, pulling her down onto the bed with him "It's too early," he complained as he slid his hand up her shirt and tickled her.

She laughed and kissed him before squirming out of his embrace "Get up already," she cajoled, grabbing one of his arms and using all of her might to drag him from his cotton cocoon.

"Okay, okay," he protested, struggling to stay on his feet. He managed to get his arm back from Olivia and used it to scoop her up into a hug. He kissed her deeply "I love you," he smiled.

Olivia laughed and pushed him away from her "I love you too but you have horrible morning breath. Don't kiss me again until you've brushed your teeth."

Elliot retreated into the bathroom with a phony expression of dejection on his face. The first thing he did when he emerge twenty minutes later was to go into the kitchen, where Olivia was spreading the remains of a jar of peanut butter on the crackers that Elliot had found the night before for breakfast, and swoop her up into another hug ending in another passionate kiss "Better?" he enquired when he set her down.

Olivia smiled approvingly "Much," she handed him a plate of crackers "Eat up," she instructed, turning and pulling the orange juice from the refrigerator.

Elliot set his plate on the table and was about to sit down when the phone that hung on the kitchen wall began to ring. He crossed the space in two short strides and answered it "Yes," he began but stopped short at the voice on the other end.

"Good, you're home," it was Kathy "Do you know what Dickie did?" from the tone in her voice, Elliot could tell that it wasn't good.

"Kathy…" Elliot sighed "I can't talk about this right n—"

"Oh, you don't have to talk," Kathy cut him off "You just have to listen."

Olivia lay the cracker she had been buttering down on the plate and let the knife, which still had peanut butter on it, fall to the counter as she listened intently; Kathy was speaking so loudly that Olivia could hear it from where she stood.

"He punched another boy outside school yesterday afternoon. The kid is in the hospital. His parents are thinking of pressing charges. This is all your fault Elliot!" she yelled.

"Kathy—"

"Don't you Kathy me!" she screamed "You come talk to him today."

"I have to work," Elliot protested meekly.

"Find the time!" Kathy screamed again, even more infuriated than before "I can't believe you can't pull yourself away from your job or your slutty partner to talk some sense into your sun."

"Now that's enough," Elliot slammed his hand on the counter. He could tell without looking that Olivia had heard and that her expression was now one of shock and hurt; Kathy hadn't ever gotten along with Olivia but she had never referred to her in those terms before in the three months that he had been living with her. Kathy had been moody lately and Elliot had been willing to chalk it up to pregnancy hormones but her personal attack on Olivia was something he was not going to let go so easily.

"I'm sorry," Kathy's voice returned to a more normal level, so low in fact that Olivia could no longer hear her from where she stood, not that she wanted to. "That was out of line, it's just… the police already took one of my children away, I can't take losing another one."

"You never lost Kathleen," Elliot reminded her softly. He cleared his throat "I'll find some time this afternoon to talk to Dickie."

"Thanks El," Kathy said resignedly before hanging up the phone without so much as a goodbye.

Elliot turned to Olivia and closed the distance between them, wrapping her in a tight hug and burying his face in her hair "She didn't mean it," he told her as he ran a hand down her back.

"I know," Olivia responded, her voice muffled by the fabric of Elliot's shirt. She pulled away from Elliot and picked the knife up off the counter and went back to making her breakfast "Do you think they'll really press charges?" she asked as means of making conversation.

"I don't know," Elliot said, still standing behind her "Kathy said the kid was in the hospital but that could mean any number of things. Maybe I can find some time after I talk to Dickie to go talk to the other kid's parents."

"I bet if you explain the situation to Cragen, he'll let you take an hour or so," Olivia picked up her plate and carried it to the table, dropping the peanut butter covered knife idly in the sink as she went. She set her plate across from Elliot's and sat down. "I'm sure his parents are reasonable people. If Dickie apologizes it'll probably be fine."

"I don't know," Elliot rubbed his hand over his face as he took his own seat and lifted one of the peanut butter laden crackers to his lips "The older Dickie gets, the less the 'boys will be boys' excuse holds water."

Olivia nodded and chewed her meal contemplatively. It wasn't until she had swallowed her first cracker that she remembered that the orange juice was still sitting on the counter. She quickly jumped up and poured two glasses "Sorry," she said as she placed Elliot's glass in front of him "You can just pretend it's coffee until we get a chance to go to Starbucks."

Elliot laughed and shot her a smile, reaching up and grabbing her hand, bringing it to his lips "Thanks," he released her gently and she returned to her seat. "You know Liv," he added jokingly "You make the best damn peanut butter crackers I ever ate."

"Well," Olivia smirked "If you pick up some jelly at the store today, I'll make you a breakfast that'll rock your world." The two of them burst into laughter, pure, loud, unburdened laughter.

When they finished Elliot placed their dishes in the sink, alongside the many others that had accumulated there over the past few days. In the back of his mind he added "wash dishes" to the list of things that needed to be done when he got a chance.

Olivia grabbed her bag from where she had left it the night before and went to the closet to grab their rain coats. She handed Elliot his coat before she pulled hers on "It's really coming down hard," she remarked, taking one last glance out the window before exiting the apartment.

"This whether sucks," Elliot muttered when they had reached the ground floor of the building and had stepped out onto the street only to discover that their rain coats did not provide them any sort of protection at all from the pelting rain and furious winds.

"Cheer up," Olivia told him playfully, grabbing his hand "It's not so bad. It could be worse."

"Don't say that," Elliot told her quickly.

"Hmm?" Olivia asked.

"Never say 'it could be worse' because that's usually when things get worse," Elliot clarified.

"That's only in movies and on TV," she laughed, releasing his hand and walking ahead of him a few steps "You'll be a lot more optimistic once we get some coffee in you."

Elliot shrugged and followed after her. When they reached Starbucks, they pushed through the doors, glad to be out of the rain; after walking three blocks in the deluge, even Olivia's attempts to stay positive about the morning were starting to fail.

The line wasn't very long and they got their coffee pretty quickly. Neither of them wanted to head back out into the rain so soon however so after checking her watch to ensure that they wouldn't be late, Olivia sat down at a table "This is kinda nice," she smiled softly as Elliot sat down across from her.

Elliot took an enormous gulp of coffee before setting the cup on the table "Yeah," he mused. At that moment, he wondered if there was something to Olivia's theory about the caffeine cheering him up.

Olivia smiled, setting her cup on the table and moving the stirrer back and forth absently "I like it when it's just us," she observed.

Elliot chuckled and looked pointedly around the slowly filling coffee shop "It looks like it's not just us here," he smiled.

"You know what I mean," Olivia couldn't help grinning at him.

"Yeah," Elliot said, reaching across the table and covering her hand with his "I like it too."

Olivia flipped her hand over palm up and laced her fingers with his, squeezing gently "I love you so much," she whispered, unable to keep her eyes from misting over.

"I love you too," he whispered back reassuringly, leaning forward and kissing her tenderly "You know that right?"

She withdrew her hand and looked down into the dark depths of her coffee cup "Yeah," she gave an imperceptible nod "I know." There were so many things that she wanted to say in that moment but she knew that it was neither the time nor the place. She loved him and she knew he loved her but she felt guilty for every moment. It wasn't right that Kathy was pregnant with his child and Elliot had chosen to be with Olivia. She hated herself for it most days and the more she tried to ignore it and allow herself to be happy with Elliot, the more it hurt when she was reminded of the whole mess all over again.

When Kathy had called earlier that morning screaming and yelling Olivia just wanted to run from the kitchen, go somewhere where she didn't have to hear the mess that she had caused. She wished that there was some way that she and Elliot could be together without any complications but that didn't seem like a possibility.

"Hey," Elliot said gently, reaching up and stroking her cheek, effectively pulling her back into the moment "You okay?" he asked softly.

Olivia nodded and looked down at her watch "We should get going or Cragen will be chewing our asses out from now until Christmas after next." She got up from the table and, tipping back the last of her by now cold coffee, tossed the empty cup in the trash can.

Elliot got up quickly and followed her, placing a hand on her shoulder "Hey," he said soothingly "What's up? Does this have to do with what Kathy said?" he asked, knowing that it was almost definitely related to that.

She turned to him and wrapped her arms around him "I love you," she whispered "I'll do anything to make this work."

Elliot returned the hug "I love you too," he replied, kissing her lips softly "Don't worry, this whole thing with Kathy… it's… it's just a rough patch."

Olivia nodded and pulled away from him "Let's go," she said, forcing a smile.

Elliot followed her out of the Starbucks and back into the rain. They made their way to the parking garage where they rented a parking space. When he got to the driver's side door, Elliot reached into his pocket for the keys "Shit!" he hissed loudly.

"What's wrong?" Olivia asked quickly, meeting his gaze over the roof of the car.

"I must have dropped the keys," he explained beginning to walk away from the car, his eyes scanning the floor of the parking garage.

Olivia reached into her pocket and dangled the keys in the air "It's okay, I have them."

Elliot came back over to her and kissed her as he took the keys from her hands "You're a lifesaver," he smiled softly as he went back around to the driver's side and unlocked the car.

Olivia pulled open her door and slid into the car beside him "Just remember that this afternoon when my paperwork decides to find its way onto your desk."

Elliot laughed "That's not happening," he said with so much certainty behind his words that Olivia couldn't help herself.

"And why not?" she asked, her own laughter loud and clear, intermingling with his in the space between them.

"Because you love me too much to torture me that way," he told her.

She shot him a wicked grin "Maybe it's because I love you that I choose to torture you?" she suggested.

He laughed "You are one cruel woman," he pulled into a parking space "You can try putting all that paperwork on my desk, whether it gets done or not… well we'll just see about that."

"Oh yes," Olivia grinned as she got out of the car "It'll get done," she came around the car and stood next to him "You'll do it or I'll find some other man to sleep with tonight."

Elliot threw his hands in the air "Cruel!" he protested "Absolutely cruel!"

Olivia leaned in and kissed him "Just kidding," she smirked playfully "Besides," she added, pulling away "You have to talk to Dickie this afternoon."

Elliot nodded; he could already feel Kathy's cold stare following him and he hadn't even set foot in the house yet. At that moment, he would have done the paperwork for the entire unit if there was even the slightest chance that he could escape his fate.

Olivia slapped him lightly on the shoulder "Come on," she said with a small smile "We should get in there or all of Munch and Fin's paperwork will be on both of our desks while they're out on the streets chasing down our leads."

Elliot nodded and followed Olivia into the precinct.

**A/N: I hope you liked the first chapter. The real drama begins next chapter so review and I'll try to post again soon.**


	2. Chapter 2: Cold Streets

To Love and Be Loved

Chapter 2: Cold Streets

A/N: Here's the second chapter. Thanks to everyone who reviewed the first.

"Good of you to show up," Cragen said dryly as Olivia and Elliot entered the squad room "Our guy struck again."

"Sorry Cap," the two said in unison as they sat down at their desks. In the midst of the exhaustion and lack of food from the night before and the business with Kathy early that morning, it had been relatively easy to pack the facts of the case away in the recesses of their minds but now that they were back at the precinct, it hit them full on.

Women had been disappearing in Manhattan. Their bodies would be discovered within two days of their disappearances. They had found a witness the day before who had provided them with a composite of the suspect. The belongings of the women were always left behind at the scenes of the abductions and fingerprints had been found on all of them, but the suspect was not in the system so the sketch was a big break through. But apparently, it hadn't come soon enough.

"Gloria Strom," Cragen said as he pinned her picture to the board alongside the photos of the three other women "37, last seen dropping her daughter off at dance class last night at six."

"Her purse and cell phone were found underneath a bush in the parking lot of a pharmacy next to the dance studio," Munch informed the group as he looked through his notes.

"Okay people," Cragen addressed them authoritatively "We've got a ticking clock here. Munch, Fin, go talk to the daughter. Elliot, Olivia, take the sketch and show it around the area near the pharmacy, see if anyone remembers seeing this guy." The detectives went their separate ways.

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Benjamin Strom was a skinny man. As he led the detectives into his living room where his eight year old daughter sat, John Munch had to wonder if the man always looked this pale or if this was a recent attribute that simply added to his already sickly appearance.

"Sarah," Mr. Strom said softly to the little girl who sat on the couch with her legs crossed and her teeth digging into her bottom lip so sharply that the flesh was bone white "These men are police officers," he put a kind hand on his daughters shoulder "They want to ask you a few questions."

Sarah looked up but didn't say a word. Munch and Fin took seats on the couch opposite the one that Sarah was sitting on. A cry rang through the apartment and Mr. Strom left to tend to his young son.

"Hi Sarah," Munch began in a kind voice "How are you feeling?"

Sarah ignored his question "Are you gonna find my Mommy?" she asked in a tone both innocent and fearful.

"We're gonna try," Fin assured her.

Munch uncapped his pen and let the tip hover above his legal pad "Do you mind if we ask you a few questions?" he asked.

"Okay," Sarah said quietly.

"When your mom dropped you off at dance class last night," Munch began, noticing how the little girl's sorrowful expression seemed to grow even more so "Did you notice anyone watching you?"

Sarah scrunched up her face in thought and then nodded "There was this guy," she started "He was sitting on the bench outside the drugstore."

Munch nodded "What did he look like?" he pressed gently.

Sarah thought for another minute "He had dark hair and he looked creepy."

Munch wasn't surprised at the generalness of the child's statement. He pulled a copy of the sketch out of the notebook he was writing in and held it out to Sarah "Is this him?" he asked.

Sarah nodded, her eyes began to cloud with tears and she sunk her teeth back into her bottom lip as she turned away and buried her face in a pillow.

Munch leaned forward and gave her a pat on the shoulder "Thanks Sarah," he whispered "You were a big help. We're gonna find your mom." The little girl nodded but did not look up as the two detectives took their leave.

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"Yeah, I remember him," the young woman behind the counter of the pharmacy, Lydia Homes, told Elliot and Olivia "He came in here yesterday afternoon and bought two boxes of Nyquil and a pack of gum."

"Do you remember all of your customers with such detail?" Olivia asked with a hint of sarcasm.

"Nah," the woman answered, obviously not picking up on Olivia's sarcastic tone "He just stuck in my mind because he was acting really weird."

"Weird how?" Elliot inquired.

"He was nervous," Lydia recalled "He kept glancing towards the door while I rang him up. I asked him about it, he told me I didn't know what I was talking about. When the machine took longer than normal to print out his receipt and I asked him to wait, he got this really scary look and I thought he was gonna hit me."

"Did you report this to your manager?" Olivia asked.

"No," Lydia replied "I'd been working for eleven hours straight. I just wanted to go home. When I left at six, he was sitting outside. I was almost afraid he was waiting for me or something," she laughed "Silly huh?"

"Not as silly as you might think," Elliot told her "After you went home, he kidnapped a woman in this very parking lot. If you see him again, call us." He and Olivia turned and left the pharmacy leaving a very shocked and frightened Lydia behind them.

"Nyquil," Olivia observed. The over the counter medicine had been found in the blood streams of all of the victims.

"He probably buys a fresh supply before he takes each new victim," Elliot hypothesized in a defeated tone.

"I don't think so," Olivia said as she stepped off the curb "This is the first abduction anywhere near a drug store. He probably ran out and decided that as long as he was here, he'd take another victim," she felt the bile rise inside her and she pushed it back with every fiber of her being.

"If she had just said something," Elliot muttered.

Olivia nodded and was about to say something when her cell phone rang. She pulled it out and flipped it open "Benson," she listened for a moment before saying "Okay, we'll be there," she hung up and turned to Elliot "Morales is done analyzing the surveillance tape. He's got something."

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"That's Gloria," Elliot murmured as he and Olivia stood, focusing on the tape that Morales was showing them. This was the first time that their perp had abducted someone from someplace that was in view of a surveillance camera. They could see the store front and the entire parking lot on the screen. Gloria had just exited the store.

"What's she carrying?" Olivia asked, looking pointedly at the small bag that Gloria was carrying.

"What ever it is," Elliot remarked "CSU didn't find it anywhere near where she was taken." They continued to watch the tape as their suspect got off the bench and followed Gloria to her car. Gloria had just pulled her keys out of her purse when the man tripped her. Gloria dropped her keys and the bag from the pharmacy as she used her hands to break her fall.

She attempted to pick herself up but never even saw her attackers face as he pulled a knife from his jacket pocket and held it to her throat. He dragged her off camera and moments later a car sped past and out of the parking lot.

Olivia and Elliot stared at the screen in shock for a few moments before Olivia broke the silence "Did you get a license plate?"

Morales nodded, typing vigorously on the keyboard in front of him "It's a partial plate but that's a lot more than what we knew yesterday."

"Thanks," Olivia smiled in Morales's direction before she and Elliot left. In the hallway, Olivia glanced at her watch "It's 2:30," she told Elliot "You should get going and talk to Dickie."

Elliot groaned, holding the door open for Olivia as the two walked out onto the street "I'll do your paperwork for a month if you do it for me."

"No way," Olivia told him firmly, swatting him on the arm "Think about how uncomfortable it's gonna be for you and multiply that by a million and that's how uncomfortable it'll be for me."

Elliot nodded, pulling out the keys and opening the car door "You want me to drop you off somewhere?" he asked.

Olivia nodded as she slid into the car "Take me back to that pharmacy, I wanna talk to the rest of their employees, see if they remember this guy from anywhere else."

"Good thinking," Elliot complimented as he started the car. "You think he lives around there?"

"I was looking over the locations of the other crime scenes," she told him, pulling out a map from the folder she was carrying.

Elliot stopped at a red light and took the map from her to look at it for himself "How did we miss this," he murmured, rubbing his brow. The pharmacy was almost at the center of the other three abductions. The light changed to green and Elliot quickly handed the map back to Olivia as he pressed down on the gas.

"It's his hunting ground," Olivia stated "He has to live in the area. Chances are someone who works at the pharmacy has seen him before, whether he was buying Nyquil or not. Maybe someone knows his name," she added hopefully.

Elliot pulled up in front of the pharmacy "Good luck," he smiled at her. She had her hand on the door handle when he placed a hand on her knee, stopping her "Be careful," he said softly.

Olivia turned back to him "Elliot…" she began but he moved his hand from her knee to her cheek and she trailed off, finding herself being drawn into his gaze.

"Just be careful," he whispered, leaning closer and placing a lingering kiss on her lips "I just don't want anything to happen to you."

Olivia kissed him back, reaching up with her hand and taking his "Nothing's gonna happen," she assured him "I'm just interviewing some people Elliot, you worry too much."

Elliot nodded "But with our luck, he's likely to walk in while you're there. I just don't want you to do anything risky."

Olivia laughed "Elliot, nothing's gonna happen," she restated her earlier point. "You're just stalling so you don't have to see Kathy," she accused.

He pulled her into another kiss "Partly yes," he admitted and she laughed "But I just want you to…"

"Be careful," she finished for him "Yeah, Elliot, I know," she was beginning to get slightly irritated with him.

"Okay," Elliot pulled back and threw his hands in the air "I'm a broken record."

Olivia laughed again "Yes, you are, but you're my broken record," she leaned over and this time was the one to initiate the kiss "I love you," she turned and got out of the car.

"I love you too," Elliot called after her "Be… safe," he corrected at the last second.

Olivia's clear laughter reached him all the way across the parking lot and drifted through the open car window "Nice one."

Elliot smiled, waved to her and pulled out of the parking lot, heading for Kathy's.

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Kathy greeted him at the door. Her expression was one of quiet anger. Elliot found himself fidgeting under her gaze. He had stared down some of the most deplorable criminals imaginable and still his ex-wife could reduce him to a nervous wreck. "Hi Kathy," he greeted "Where's Dickie?"

"In the living room," Kathy pointed, her tone noncommittal "He's been suspended until further notice."

Elliot entered the living room to find his son, sitting on the couch, playing a video game. He watched the screen as the character Dickie was controlling punched and kicked another character. Elliot wondered why Kathy would allow Dickie to play a game like this considering the circumstances surrounding his suspension.

Elliot cleared his throat but Dickie didn't even acknowledge his father's presence. Elliot decided that more drastic action needed to be taken. He walked over to the wall and unplugged the surge protector that powered not only the video game consol but the TV as well. The screen went dark instantly.

"What'd you do that for?!" Dickie screamed, throwing his game controller in the direction of the interloper without looking to see who it was first.

Elliot caught the controller in mid air "Good arm," he smirked as he came over and sat down beside Dickie on the couch "But maybe you shouldn't be using your powers for evil?" he suggested.

Dickie looked up at his father and turned beet red instantly "Dad… I didn't know it was you… I…"

"Who did you think it was?" Elliot asked sternly, staring daggers through his teenage son. Dickie began to speak when Elliot cut him off "It doesn't matter who you thought I was, there is no excuse for throwing this," he held up the controller "At anyone."

"Dad… I…" Dickie stammered.

"What's up with you Dickie?" Elliot asked "You punched a kid at school and put him in the hospital."

"That wasn't my fault!" Dickie protested "He fell down and hit his head."

"After you hit him," Elliot told him.

"He was asking for it," Dickie muttered, turning away from his father "What ever Mom got you in here to say, say it and leave me alone. I've heard the 'violence never solved anything' speech too many times to count. And coming from you it doesn't mean much."

Elliot was taken aback at the complete and utter disrespect his son was showing him. Dickie had always admired and looked up to him and Elliot would be lying if he said that this change in attitude was no big deal. Truthfully, it was tearing him up inside. He stood up "I'll see you this weekend," he said as he walked out of the room.

"Yeah, sure," Dickie grumbled in response.

Elliot stepped out onto the front stoop and saw Elizabeth, standing in the shadow of the house, looking small, lost. He walked up to her "Liz?" he asked, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Elizabeth didn't look at her father but instead said in a tiny voice "Dickie shouldn't get in trouble for punching Brent."

Elliot pulled back in surprise. He knew his two youngest children were close and that they usually stood up for each other but he didn't expect Elizabeth to come to her brother's defense in such a manner.

"He did it for me," she continued.

"What do you mean?" Elliot asked.

Elizabeth turned towards the house "I can't talk about this right now," she said quickly "Homework." And with that, she had disappeared.

Elliot stood there, watching his youngest daughter. He had seen behavior like that before and the thought made him sick. If it was what it looked like, he didn't blame Dickie in the least for punching that kid. He resolved to have a talk with this Brent kid's parents.

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"No, doesn't ring a bell," Joe Parker, the pharmacist said, glancing at the sketch in Olivia's hand.

"Maybe if you looked for more than half a second," Olivia suggested with a tone of mild irritation.

"Look lady," Joe said, putting down the bottle of pills he was holding and looking her in the eye "I see thousands of people every day. I check IDs, I fill prescriptions and then I do it all over again. I don't have much memory for faces."

"So, you're sure you've never seen this man before?" Olivia prodded.

"I can't be sure," Joe said in frustration "Like I said, I don't have much memory for faces."

Olivia sighed "Thanks anyway," she said, turning away from Joe and scanning the place for an employee she hadn't questioned yet when a commotion from outside got her attention.

She rushed to the front of the store to see a crowd of people lining the streets as a half naked and disoriented woman ran down the street. Olivia rushed outside, recognizing the woman's face instantly. She ran to the woman "Someone call 911!" she screamed at the seemingly indifferent crowd just as Gloria Strom collapsed into her arms.

"Please help me?" Gloria said weakly as Olivia took off her jacket and wrapped it around the barely conscious and bleeding woman.

"It's okay," Olivia assured her "It's okay Gloria. I'm a cop. You're safe now."

"Sarah…?" Gloria whispered.

"She's fine," Olivia smiled softly "She's gonna be happy to see you."

"He… he told me… that she… he said he…" Gloria trailed off, too weak to talk anymore.

"He lied Gloria," Olivia told her as the paramedics arrived. Olivia stood back, informing them of the victims age and that she had most likely been raped as well as the fact that she was probably high on Nyquil. They loaded Gloria into the back of the ambulance and Olivia hopped in behind them.

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"She's in intensive care now," Olivia informed Elliot over the phone "She lost a lot of blood. He really did a number on her."

"It's a miracle she got away," Elliot remarked.

"From what I was able to get from her in the ambulance ride," Olivia said, checking her notes "He tied her up and left her alone for five hours. She managed to get free."

"Did she say where he kept her?" Elliot asked, hopefully.

"No," Olivia sighed "They're gonna let me talk to her in a few minutes but Elliot, she was running for her life, she was drugged and beaten, I don't know if she even knows where she was when she was found."

On his end of the phone, Elliot nodded "I'll keep working on the license plate angle," he told her.

"Okay," Olivia agreed. She changed the topic "So, I was thinking I'd stop by the grocery store on the way home. I thought we could have a real home cooked meal for once."

"Sounds great," Elliot cradled the phone close to his ear lovingly.

"See you in a couple hours," Olivia told him; she could see Gloria's doctor coming down the hall.

"I'll be counting the seconds," Elliot said earnestly.

Olivia chuckled "You can be so corny sometimes."

"I know," Elliot admitted and Olivia could hear the grin in his voice.

"I love you," Olivia smiled as she spoke those wonderful words. They flowed from her lips so naturally that sometimes she found herself wondering why she had waited so long to say them to Elliot.

"I love you too," he wished he could reach out and caress her cheek, touch her thigh, kiss her, but he would have to wait for that pleasure "I'll see you soon."

"Okay," Olivia saw that the doctor was only a few steps away "I have to go now bye," she flipped her phone closed and stood up.


	3. Chapter 3: One of Their Own

To Love and Be Loved

Chapter 3: One of Their Own

A/N: This story is about to take a pretty dramatic turn but those of you who know me will not be that surprised. Thanks to all of you who are reading. I hope you continue to enjoy this story. And for fans of "Fooling Ourselves" I have good news, I should have the next chapter of that story up in the next week. Love to you all.

The dimly lit room was empty. He cursed himself for not locking the door behind him when he left. The ropes he had used to bind her lay on the floor amidst the trickling rivers of her blood. She had gotten away.

"Damn it!" he shouted, kicking at the floor of the cellar room. He turned and ran up the stairs, cursing his underestimation of that bitch. He would never make that mistake again. He ran out onto the street. She hadn't left a blood trail. He couldn't track her but on the plus side, it would take the police longer to find the warehouse.

She had been disoriented. He had beaten her until she didn't know which way was up. He was confident that there was no way that she would be able to tell them where she had been held. Still, he couldn't risk staying put. He packed up everything he would need for his next guest and jumped in his car.

He would get settled somewhere secure before he took another woman. But even as he thought this, he felt the unyielding hunger inside him, the need to dominate another, to degrade that person, to watch them suffer as he plunged into their supple flesh. He knew he couldn't stave off the need for long.

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"She's stable," Doctor Stevens told Olivia as they walked through the long white hospital corridors "But she's very week. I can't in good conscience let you speak to her for more than a few minutes. If you cause her any undo stress, I don't know how it could affect her." They stopped outside Gloria's hospital room.

Olivia turned to Dr. Stevens "This woman may be our best hope of getting a dangerous predator off the streets."

"I understand that Detective but she's at a critical stage. I know you'll want to talk to her while her memory is still fresh but considering how much Nyquil we found in her system, I'm not sure how much difference a few hours verses a few days will make."

"In a few days," Olivia said, trying to keep her voice even "This sick bastard could grab and kill another woman while we sit around and do nothing," she was losing the battle and her tone was rising.

"A few minutes Detective," Dr. Stevens said firmly "That's all I can give you, I'm sorry."

Olivia sighed in resignation and entered the room. Gloria lay in a bed, a heart monitor on one side and an IV pole on the other. Olivia approached slowly and took a seat beside her "Gloria," she began softly.

Gloria's eyes opened and focused shakily on Olivia "You're the one who rode with me in the ambulance," she murmured in recognition.

"That's right," Olivia's smiled softly "My name's Olivia. Can we talk for a minute?" she asked gently.

"My husband?" Gloria asked, glancing around her.

"He's on his way," Olivia told her "But before he gets here, I'd like to ask you some questions about the man who did this to you."

Gloria's breathing became faster and Olivia could hear the doctor's warning voice behind her "Detective, don't subject her to this kind of stress."

Olivia turned and shot the man an 'I know what I'm doing' look before turning back to Gloria. She placed a comforting hand on Gloria's shoulder "Gloria, it's okay, you're safe. Take a deep breath," Gloria did as she was told "Good," Olivia smiled softly "Now, can you tell me about the place where you were when you got away?"

Gloria nodded slightly and Olivia took out her notepad as Gloria began to speak "It was dark," she began "He… he left the door unlocked. I got my hands and feet free and I… There were stairs. It was… so quiet. I got outside…"

"What did it look like outside?" Olivia asked, knowing that Gloria had to have been held prisoner in the neighborhood surrounding the drugstore; there was no way she could have run very far in her condition.

"There were trees," Gloria was having a hard time remaining lucid "Blue car parked out front," Olivia nodded, she must have seen the car that she had been abducted in. "I knew he'd be coming back," Gloria continued "Had to… had to… get… get away…" her breathing was coming faster again and the heart monitor started beeping, signaling that her heart rate was too high for safety.

"That's enough," Dr. Stevens said, stepping forward and physically pulling Olivia away from Gloria's bedside "I'm sorry Detective but no more. She's under too much stress as it is."

"Get your hands off me," Olivia seethed, pushing Dr. Stevens to the side.

The doctor looked shocked but he realized his error and followed Olivia into the hall "I'm sorry," he began "I was out of line pulling you away like that but that poor woman doesn't need to relive that hell."

"I know," Olivia said sharply "I'm just trying to make sure that no other women have to experience that hell for themselves," she turned and walked away, leaving Dr. Stevens in her wake.

Olivia's original suspicion had been correct. Gloria had been so focused on getting away and she had been so injured that there was no way that she could tell them exactly where she had been. Olivia didn't like having to put Gloria through that but she had to be absolutely sure.

Olivia pulled out her cell phone and dialed Cragen's number to report in "All I could get from Gloria is that she was held in a cellar," she told him.

"Elliot, Munch and Fin have got a list of potential cars that could be our mystery vehicle," Cragen informed her "They're checking some of them out now," his tone softened "Why don't you head home and get some rest," the fatherly part of him had picked up on the exhaustion in her tone "I'll make sure Elliot gets home at a reasonable hour," he added with a small smile.

"Thanks," Olivia murmured gratefully. She was too wiped to argue. She remembered her earlier conversation with Elliot though and the second she exited the hospital she haled a cab, because Elliot had the car, and instructed the driver to take her to the grocery store nearest to her building.

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He smirked. A new abandoned lot with a warehouse overgrown by trees and vines, the walls falling in but the cellar, relatively pristine, it was perfect. His smirk grew into a full blown smile as he thought of how soon, the floors would run red with the blood of another whore and how the thick cellar walls would muffle her screams so that no one would be able to save her.

He climbed the stairs and left the building. Now it was time to find a deserving victim. He got in his car and started to drive. Within just a few blocks, he found a grocery store. He parked and got out, looking around for surveillance cameras; he had been careless the last time at the pharmacy. He spotted one and decided that he should move on when he spotted her through the glass doors of the store. She was in line, paying for her purchases. Long brown hair, a figure that was both slight and sensual at the same time.

The uncontrollable hunger inside him flared and surveillance cameras be damned, he knew he had to possess this one, had to make her his own and hear her beg for the mercy he would never grant. He crept up to stand beside the doors of the grocery store and waited.

The grocery store was small and so late at night, there were no more than a handful of people milling around inside the building. She appeared to be alone as he watched. His hand moved inside his pants and he began to rub vigorously as he watched her flip a stray strand of hair that had come loose from her ponytail out of her face. He was going to enjoy this one.

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Olivia paid the smiling young woman behind the counter "Thanks Ashley," she managed a small wave as she scooped up her bag of groceries. She hadn't planned anything big, just pasta and jarred tomato sauce but it was better than the things they'd been eating lately. She had also remembered the coffee and she had picked up more peanut butter, a jar of strawberry jelly and a loaf of bread. It wasn't a lot of groceries but it would be enough to make sure they didn't die of malnutrition.

Olivia pushed her way through the doors and out into the night air. It was a three block walk back to the apartment but she figured she had it in her, no matter how tired she was. She'd only made it a few steps when she stumbled.

Dazed and trying not to land on top of her spilled groceries, she looked around for what it was that had tripped her when she felt something cold and metallic pressed against her throat. The surveillance tape from the drugstore flashed through her mind and she closed her eyes, thinking rapidly, trying to figure a way out of this.

The man pulled her to her feet and pushed her in the direction of his car, which Olivia also recognized from the tape. He reached the car and popped the trunk, the knife never leaving its place against the soft flesh of her neck.

"Get in," she heard the low rumble of his voice as he ground his hips against her rear end.

Her mind darted from possibility to possibility. When she didn't respond to his order immediately, he shoved her hard. He removed the knife from her neck just in time so it didn't cut her as she tumbled forward into the blackness of the trunk. He picked up a tier iron from beside where her head had landed and lifted it high in the air. She knew that he was going to try to knock her out. She rolled onto her side facing away from him and covered her head with her arms, minimizing the effect of the blow. He hit her two more times and she gasped but did not lose consciousness.

Finally, believing she was unconscious, he placed the iron back in the trunk and slammed it shut. Olivia rolled onto her side, her fingers grasping the cool metal of the iron like a lifeline. She heard the car's engine roar into life and she shut her eyes tight.

Then she realized that her abductor had made a fatal mistake. While with his other victims, he had left their personal possessions behind, he hadn't done so this time. She still had her cell phone. She reached into her pocket and pulled it out. It was at this moment that she realized that her fingers were slick with blood; the tier iron must have done more damage than she thought.

She struggled to dial the numbers as the phone kept slipping out of her hand. She pushed send and prayed for salvation.

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Elliot sat at his desk, rubbing his eyes "We're not getting anywhere," he sighed.

At that moment Cragen exited his office "You guys should go home and get some sleep. I'll get some guys from the night shift up here to help narrow this down."

Elliot stood up and was about to turn to leave when the phone on his desk rang. He plopped back into his chair, sensing that this call could only mean a long night for him, and answered "Stabler, Special Victim's Unit."

"Elliot," it was Olivia's voice but there was something wrong. Her voice was a distant and almost pained whisper.

"Liv," he said softly, his tone full of concern "What is it?"

As if on cue, Munch, Fin and Cragen automatically stopped what they were doing and listened intently to Elliot's side of the conversation.

"I was grocery shopping," she told him, very aware of how loud her voice sounded. She only hoped she didn't atract the attention of her abductor "Elliot, it happened just like how we saw it happen to Gloria. He tripped me and… I didn't know what happened…" she trailed off, her fear was grabbing her from the inside, like a cold hand, clenching her internal organs between its fingers. It had become hard to talk.

Elliot's heart had stopped beating. He pulled the phone away from his ear and spoke to the others "He's got her," those three words were all that was needed to set a flurry of activity into motion.

"Get TARU in here!" Cragen barked at Munch "I want a trace on her cell now!"

Munch disappeared from sight instantly and returned in a matter of seconds, practically dragging Morales and all of his equipment. Once the situation had been explained to the confused young man, he quickly set about locating Olivia.

"Liv honey," Elliot spoke soothingly. He didn't even bother to maintain an air of professionalism anymore. There were enough people around him who could be professional. "We're gonna find you. Don't worry, we're gonna find you," he was reassuring himself as much as he was her.

"Elliot," Olivia began, she couldn't remember being so terrified in her life, maybe it was because she had never stood to lose so much by dying before "I just want you to know… If something happens and…"

"Don't think that way," Elliot begged desperately, ignoring the presence of the others around him as he spoke "We're going to find you. I promise."

"Please," her voice was so small and so unlike her that it brought tears to his eyes "I just want you to know that I've never loved anyone as much."

"I know," he told her, inches away from sobbing "I know. I love you too. You've got to hang in there, we're going to get to you."

Olivia was going to say something else but the car's engine cut off. She tried to get a good grip on the tier iron but it slipped through her fingers. She heard the footsteps coming around to the trunk. Then the trunk was open and the night air rushed in. She had one chance and she grabbed one last time for the tier iron but he beat her to it.

"You bitch," he seethed, noticing the cell phone, clutched tight in her hand. He had made another mistake but he would make her pay for his oversight. He tore the phone from her bloody hands and threw it to the ground.

On the other end of the phone, Elliot could hear the new voice and he knew that the phone had been discovered when he heard the man cursing and what sounded like punching.

"Who did you call?!" he screamed as he lifted Olivia out of the trunk, fueled by anger and threw her to the ground beside her phone.

Olivia curled onto her side to protect herself from the repeated blows to her body. She reached for her gun, hoping for just one shot but just as she managed to pull it from its holster, the man kicked it right out of her hand. She scrambled onto all fours and tried to get away but the man threw his entire weight on top of her and she fell to the ground.

The last thing Elliot heard before the phone went dead was the man hissing "I'll make you suffer for that." And Olivia's pained cry.

The phone went dead "No," Elliot whispered, fighting against a torrent of tears.

"We've got it," Morales said triumphantly.

And just like that, Elliot didn't have time to surrender to tears, he pushed them back as he stood from his desk, grabbing his coat and putting it on in one fluid motion "Let's go," he said with nothing but determination.

Cragen opened his mouth to protest, to say that Elliot was too close to this. But he would have been a hypocrite if he had said anything to that effect because they were all too close to this in one way or another. And though none were closer to Olivia than Elliot Stabler, Cragen would never trust this to anyone else.

Elliot grabbed Morales by the collar of his jacket and pulled him and his laptop from the squad room. He was followed closely by Munch, Fin and Cragen. Each man prayed that they would get there before the unthinkable happened.


	4. Chapter 4: Stranger in the Mirror

**To Love and Be Loved**

**Chapter 4: Stranger in the Mirror**

A/N: Wow, I got a lot of reviews really fast. Thanks you guys. As a special treat I thought I'd update again and give you guys the answers that you've been waiting for, includint a better idea of what's happening with Dickie and Elizabeth. Keep those reviews coming. Love ya!

Olivia's head was reeling. _Thud… Thud… Thud…_ Her head hurt. _Thud… Thud… Thud…_ The last thing she remembered was that bastard jumping on top of her and her. _Thud… Thud… Thud…_ He'd grabbed the tier iron and hit her with it. _Thud… Thud… Thud…_ She suddenly became aware of where she was. She was being dragged down a flight of stairs by her feet. Her head was hitting the edge of every step. _Thud… Thud… Thud…_ The pain was excruciating but it had pulled her back into consciousness.

They had reached the bottom of the stairs. Olivia summoned all of her remaining strength and kicked her legs free of the grip of her captor. She succeeded and her maneuver had the added effect of knocking the man backwards. He landed flat on his ass. Olivia couldn't help her self, she smiled as she pulled herself onto her hands and knees. The sudden dizzy spell that hit her was powerful but somehow she managed to push through it and make her way to the staircase. Before she began her assent, she hazarded a glance back at the man. He sat against the wall, struggling to move, his face a mask of pain and pure fury.

She grimaced as she hauled herself up the first step. This sucked but at least she had leveled the playing field. She wasn't gonna let this asshole beat her. Elliot's desperate words rang in her head. She wouldn't leave him. There was no force in the world great enough to make her give up hope of making her way back into his arms. She pulled herself up another step and paused, waiting for the staircase in front of her to stop wobbling.

It was then that she felt it, the tug on her ankle that nearly caused her to tumble back down the three steps she had already managed to concur. She turned her head to see that the man had managed to crawl to her and was trying to drag her down to him.

"Stupid bitch!" he hissed as he tugged harder "I swear you'll suffer worse than any of the others."

Olivia dug her knees in firmly to the step and used her free foot to kick him in the face. The man fell back, clutching his nose as the blood cascaded from it in a satisfying gusher. He howled in pain as Olivia took her opportunity to move forward. She could hear the sirens in the distance. They were coming, help was coming. All she had to do was hold on. She just had to survive, stay one step ahead of this monster until help arrived. "Just one more step," she muttered to herself again and again. Each step brought her further away from the man and closer to rescue.

A loud noise from behind her caught her attention and she risked the oncoming nausea to look. The man, powered by rage alone now, launched himself at her, tackling her. Together they fell to the bottom of the staircase where he lay on top of her.

"Oh yeah," he said as he tried to catch his breath "I'm gonna enjoy this." Olivia heard the squad cars pulling up and opened her mouth to call out to them but the man clamped a hand over her mouth "No you don't," he whispered. He had heard the sirens too. He knew he was going down but he wasn't going down alone.

Olivia could hear the voices of the people above, they were searching each room of the dilapidated warehouse. By the time they got to the basement, she'd probably be dead if the man on top of her had his way. She managed to bite down on the hand covering her mouth and the man pulled it away in shock just long enough for her to scream. The scream took no recognizable verbal form but that wasn't important anymore. With safe haven within reach, words didn't matter.

She heard the footfalls on the stairs as the man began to choke her. She fought it, gasping and gulping and trying to scream again. Then, the man was lifted off of her, the sound of handcuffs clanging shut echoed in the stairwell and a pair of warm arms surrounded her, lifting her off the cold concrete.

"Liv?" Elliot's worried voice filled her mind "Oh God," he whispered and she could hear the tears in his voice. She knew that if she could just find the strength to open her eyes she would see them falling down his cheeks "Olivia, please be okay?" she felt his ear hovering above her lips, searching for a breath. She just had to open her eyes. Why couldn't she open her eyes? "She's not breathing," Elliot called out in a panic. The next thing Olivia felt was his lips on hers. He breathed into her and she could feel with each breath, the hope that it would bring her back to him.

At last, he stopped, cradling her in his arms. She tried once again and this time her eyes obeyed the frantic screaming of her mind. She looked up into Elliot's face "Hi," she whispered hoarsely.

She had been right about the tears. His eyes were full and brimming over. The tears ran down his face in little rivers "Hi yourself," he gave her a watery smile as he kissed her softly "I thought I'd lost you."

Olivia's hand found his and she grasped it tightly "It's gonna take a lot more than that to get rid of me."

Elliot was forced to release her as the paramedics came over and lifted Olivia onto a stretcher. He continued to keep a tight grip on her hand as he walked along side the stretcher "Glad to hear it," he managed to smile as fresh tears poured forth.

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In the hospital Olivia still held tight to Elliot's hand, refusing to let it go. She still felt an unbelievable crushing fear and her instincts told her not to let him go if she could help it. She'd been lucky, nothing had been broken. She only had a concussion, a pretty bad concussion that caused a few problems (the most notable of which being when she woke up in the middle of the night and thought that there were two Elliot's sitting by her bedside, she didn't know whether to be ecstatic or worried) but still, it could have been much, much worse.

After four days in the hospital when the dizzy spells and double vision had gone away, Olivia was released. She stood beside Elliot in the hospital room, still a little shaky on her feet "Can we go home now?" she asked; hospitals were the worst possible place to rest.

"That depends," Elliot smirked "How many of me do you see?"

"One," Olivia responded dryly "And if you ask me, one is too many right now," she ran a hand through her hair, trying not to let on that she was having a pretty bad headache.

Elliot placed his hands on either side of her face and kissed her "Let's go home," he smiled softly, leading her out of the room.

Olivia rested her head on his shoulder and her eyes felt like sliding closed. She slid into the car and flipped down the makeup mirror "Wow," she murmured; she hadn't gotten a good look at herself since her run in with the man whose name turned out to be Reggie Dullard. She was surprised and a little bit shocked to see the dark purple swollen bruises that covered her face. Olivia Benson had never been vein but the face that stared back at her from the small mirror was so different from the one that she was used to that it knocked the wind out of her.

Elliot slid in beside her and laid a hand on her arm "You should see the other guy," he smiled softly.

"Hmm…?" Olivia snapped her attention away from the stranger in the mirror.

"You kicked his ass good," he told her, patting her arm. He leaned in and kissed her bruised cheek delicately "The swelling will go down soon," he told her "They're just bruises. Don't worry about it."

Olivia turned back to the mirror "I'm not worried," she said quietly "It's just… it's strange."

Elliot reached past her and flipped the makeup mirror closed "The less you think about it the better," he said, starting the engine.

The two walked into their apartment to find Elizabeth sitting on the couch "Olivia," she said, joyfully as she got up and ran to embrace her "How are you feeling?"

"A little sore," Olivia admitted but when Elizabeth timidly pulled away she added "No honey, it's just a bit of a headache."

"As long as you're only seeing one of me," Elizabeth smiled faintly and Olivia turned on Elliot.

"Does the whole world know about that?" she asked.

"Not the whole world," Elliot held his hands up in defense "Just Cragen, Munch, Fin, Casey, Rebecca Hendrix, Morales, Ashley from the grocery store, Huang, the kids, Kathy, Kathy's boyfriend, the people who work at the Starbucks and oh yeah, Simon knows of course."

"Jeez," Olivia sighed, sinking onto the couch "At least I know who I have to avoid for the rest of my life."

Elizabeth left the living room to go get Olivia a glass of water and Elliot sat down on the couch beside her "They don't know the whole story," he teased in a whisper "They don't know that you said 'Oh, Elliot, Elliot, there's two of you, I'm in heaven.'"

"I never said that," Olivia smacked him playfully.

"I'm paraphrasing," he laughed and ducked a pillow that she tried to bop him on the head with. He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her as close to him as physically possible "It's good to have you home Liv," he kissed her.

She reached up and pulled him down to her, deepening the kiss until Elizabeth's loud exclamation separated them "You guys!" she complained as she brought Olivia the glass of water.

"Thanks Liz," Olivia smiled, gratefully accepting the glass and taking a huge gulp "What are you doing here anyway?" she inquired, looking at the clock "Aren't you supposed to be in school?"

Elliot followed Olivia's gaze to the clock and suddenly remembered "Yeah," he said, contemplatively "You should be in school right now. Why aren't you?"

Elizabeth looked away quickly "I came to celebrate Liv's homecoming," she lied.

"Elizabeth," Elliot said in a warning tone, affectively letting her know that he saw right through her attempt to fool him.

"I don't want to talk about it," she said, heading for the guest bedroom where she slept on the weekends she spent with her father. She went inside and closed the door behind her. The metallic click of the lock was relatively loud in the now silent apartment.

"She's upset," Olivia observed.

Elliot nodded "I bet that Brent kid got out of the hospital today too," he observed.

"Who's Brent?" Olivia asked, confused.

"The kid that Dickie punched," Elliot told her "The day I went to talk to him, he didn't want to talk to me about it and Elizabeth told me that he shouldn't get in trouble because he did it for her."

Olivia's eyes went wide "Elliot," she whispered "You don't think…" she trailed off.

"I'm worried about them both," Elliot said, his voice quiet as he kept his eyes on the closed bedroom door.

"Did you talk to the kid's parents?" Olivia asked.

"I was going to…" Elliot began, trailing off and Olivia knew what had gotten in the way of him doing so.

"El… I."

"Don't worry about it," he stroked her cheek "They decided not to charge Dickie with assault. I'll go talk to them tomorrow."

"I'll come with you," Olivia said determinedly.

Elliot smiled "You don't have to do that," he told her.

"I want to Elliot. I couldn't love your kids more if I had given birth to them myself. I want to know what this Brent's parent's have to say for their son."

Elliot leaned in and kissed her "You're amazing," he whispered "I love you."

"I love you too," she smiled "And you are even more amazing," she closed her eyes "Is it okay if I go to bed now?" she asked. It was only noon but for some reason, Olivia felt exhausted.

"Sure," Elliot said gently. He was worried about her but he tried not to be worried; the doctors had told them both that she would be fine, that the exhaustion would only last a few days. He walked Olivia to the bedroom even though he didn't need to. He watched her get underneath the covers and couldn't dismiss his worrisome thoughts.

When she had laid her head on the pillow, she looked up at him "Would you…?" she began timidly "I mean, if you wouldn't mind…" she trailed off.

Elliot understood what she wanted without her having to finish the question and slid in beside her, wrapping his arms around her and holding her close "No problem," he smiled softly, burying his face in her hair.

"I love you," Olivia smiled "I'm so glad I'm here with you."

Elliot bent and kissed the crown of her head "I love you too. Sweet dreams," and soon after he had uttered those words, she had fallen asleep in his arms.

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It was two hours later when Elizabeth ventured out of the guest room. Her eyes were red rimmed and puffy and she was glad when she didn't spot her father or Olivia right away. She tiptoed over to the door of the bedroom where they slept and peeked inside. She nearly gushed at the sight. They were just so cute together.

Elizabeth walked over to the phone on the kitchen wall and picked it up. Glancing at the clock, just to be sure that school was out, she dialed Dickie's cell phone number. "Dickie," she whispered when he answered the phone "What happened?"

"Don't worry," he reassured his sister "I got your homework from your teachers."

"Thanks bro," she smiled, afraid to ask the next question. Finally, she managed to force it out "What about… Brent?"

Dickie cleared his throat "Well, he stayed clear of me after what happened last time," he tried to sound macho.

"Dickie," Elizabeth chided. She had her father's uncanny gift to see through total bullshit "Please, tell me, I can handle it."

"He kept asking me where you were," Dickie told her reluctantly "He says he can't wait to…" he trailed off and it took him a moment before he could speak again "Liz, you should really tell Dad about what happened."

"I know," she admitted softly "I just… I can't do it," she almost sobbed. It had taken all her strength to confide in her brother and that had only led to more trouble when Dickie had confronted Brent. Elizabeth started to cry softly over the phone.

"Hey," Dickie said gently "I'm coming over there right now. I can help you tell Dad."

Elizabeth sniffled "Okay," she murmured "See you in a little while."

"See ya sis," Dickie said, trying to sound cheerful in the face of the situation.

Elizabeth hung up and retreated back into the guest bedroom.

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Dickie closed his phone and slipped it into his pocket. He could see Brent in the distance. He just had to get past the piece of slime and he could get on with his day, even seeing the guy made Dickie mad. If there was one thing that Dickie had learned from his father, it was that people like Brent McCray belonged in jail. He crossed to the other side of the street to avoid running into Brent but Brent followed him.

"Hey Stabler," Brent called to Dickie's back.

Dickie took a deep breath and kept on walking. He couldn't afford to get in another fight with Brent, he'd gotten lucky last time that he hadn't gotten into trouble for it but he was sure that if he ever got into another fight with the prick, he would kill him.

"Your sister screaming my name in her sleep?" Brent called out.

Again, Dickie ignored him. He knew that Elizabeth didn't sleep much these days. She locked the door to her room and didn't even let him in without asking what he wanted, when in the past, the twins had gone freely between each other's rooms without a second thought.

"Your sister's so fucking hot," Brent said. It was obvious that he was trying to goad Dickie into a fight.

Dickie turned around at this, taking deep breath after deep breath "Don't you have something better to do Brent?" he asked, the anger only just below the surface.

"Until I find out where your hot sister is hiding, no," Brent laughed. "I can't wait to fuck her again."

That was the last straw for Dickie. He drew his fist back and launched a punch right at Brent's face. Unlike the last fight however, Brent was expecting it and easily ducked. He punched Dickie, sending him to the ground. Dickie tried to right himself but was unable. Brent got two good kicks in before Dickie rolled off the sidewalk and into the street, right into the path of an oncoming car. He scrambled to his feet and managed only to be nicked by the vehicle. When he saw Brent coming towards him, he started running, not stopping until he was sure that the other boy had stopped chasing him.

He leaned against the wall just inside the subway station, catching his breath. They really needed to tell their dad about this guy. He was bad news for everyone.

He pushed himself off the wall and headed towards the train when something caught his eye. He stopped and took a second look. A very small girl sat on one of the benches, all by herself. In fact, Dickie was the closest thing to an adult in the area. Her knees were huddled to her chest and she looked cold. He approached the child and sat beside her on the bench "Hi," he began softly "I'm Dickie, what's your name?"

The child looked up with large, sad gray green eyes "Charlotte," she answered in a tiny voice.

Dickie scratched his head; he'd never met a child who didn't respond to him with the standard 'My mom says I'm not supposed to talk to strangers' line. "Nice to meet you Charlotte," he smiled kindly "How old are you?"

Charlotte smiled slightly "I'm three," she answered proudly.

That was far too young to be left on a bench alone and Dickie decided he needed to find out more about this girl "Where's your mom?" he asked.

"Don't have one," Charlotte said sadly.

"Oh," Dickie said quietly "What about your dad?"

"Don't have one," Charlotte told him.

"Oh," Dickie said again "Are you here all by yourself?"

"Yeah," Charlotte said sadly, hanging her head. A shiver wracked the child's body.

Dickie took off his coat and wrapped it around Charlotte. The child was lost in the fabric but she smiled at Dickie "Better?" he asked. Charlotte nodded. Dickie decided that he had to know more about why this little girl was alone "How long have you been sitting here?" he asked.

Charlotte shook her head "Dunno," she replied.

Dickie could see the train that went to his Dad's apartment pulling into the station. He looked back down at Samantha. He couldn't just leave her there. "Hey Charlotte?" he asked.

"Yeah," she looked up at him innocently.

"Are you hungry?"

Charlotte nodded and Dickie could tell that it had been a long time since she'd eaten anything.

"You wanna come with me and get something to eat?" Dickie asked.

Again, Charlotte nodded and slid off the bench, reaching up through the enormous sleeve of Dickie's coat to take his hand and together they boarded the train.


	5. Chapter 5: No Rest for the Weary

To Love and Be Loved

Chapter 5: No Rest for the Weary

A/N: Sorry it took me a little longer to get this chapter up. I've caught up to myself in terms of chapters I have written verses chapters I have posted. Plus, I went to see the Simpsons movie yesterday and when I got home I fell asleep and didn't get up until this morning. It was an awesome movie and I encourage anyone out there who is a Simpsons fan to go see it. It has a really good feel to it like the season 5 through season 8 episodes had, really sweet and hilarious. I actually did, as the commercial said, laugh until I couldn't breathe at least twice.

Okay, that's enough of me gushing about the movie… onto the story. I'm almost done with chapter six and could have it up by the end of the day, but I'm not making any promises, just in case something comes up.

Olivia opened her eyes and stretched. She rolled over and looked at the clock. She had been asleep for nearly three hours. She got out of bed and walked to the bathroom. She stared at herself in the mirror before splashing cold water on her bruised face. The marks of her encounter with Dullard couldn't fade fast enough.

She exited the bathroom and walked over to the door of the bedroom. She could hear voices in the living room. One of the voices was Elliot's and as she listened, she recognized the tone that his voice took when he was about to lose it. She opened the door and froze at the sight before her. Elizabeth sat on the couch, her face buried in her hands while Elliot stood almost nose to nose with his son and at the kitchen table, a small girl that Olivia didn't recognize, stood on a chair and nibbled at a sandwitch.

She stepped into the room and cleared her throat "What's going on here?" she asked, staring pointedly at Elliot who looked like he was about to scream.

"Why don't you ask him," Elliot hissed, his gaze still fixed on Dickie.

"Real mature attitude El," she smirked, coming up beside him and putting a hand on his arm "Now, calm down or I'll put you in time out."

Elliot turned to her and tried to be angry. He really tried but he didn't have it in him to be angry with her at that moment. He stopped and took a deep breath "He took a child from the subway station," he told her.

"Oh," Olivia said somberly "So, at least I'm not imagining things," she glanced over her shoulder, through the kitchen door at the small child, who had stopped eating and was listening, though Olivia wasn't sure how much of the conversation she understood.

"Her name is Charlotte," Dickie explained "And she was all alone," he defended his actions to Olivia since his father was a lost cause.

"You should have called the police," Elliot muttered angrily.

Olivia nodded in agreement and turned to Elizabeth who hadn't moved. She walked over to the couch and sat down beside her, wrapping an arm around the teenager's shoulders "And what's up with you?" she asked.

"He brought her home because he was in a hurry," Elizabeth whispered "You see…" she paused, taking a deep breath "I had to tell you guys something and I couldn't do it alone."

Olivia's heart broke for her and she pulled Elizabeth into a tight hug "Honey," she sniffed "What could possibly be so bad that you felt you couldn't tell me or your father or your mother about it?" she asked. But when Elizabeth grabbed hold of her shirt and blurted out the answer, Olivia understood all too well.

"I was raped."

She had said it loud enough that Elliot, who was still arguing with Dickie, stopped instantly and came to sit on Elizabeth's other side. He had suspected this might have been the case since the day he had gone to talk to Dickie about getting suspended from school but he had really hoped he was wrong. He wrapped his arms around his youngest daughter and he and Olivia both hugged her while she cried.

Dickie decided that they deserved some privacy so he went into the kitchen to keep Charlotte company; he sat down beside her "How are you feeling?" he asked quietly.

Charlotte ignored his question, watching the scene in the living room intently. She moved her tiny hand in Elizabeth's direction "She sad," the child observed.

"Yeah," Dickie nodded.

"Why?" Charlotte asked "Why she sad?"

Dickie was silent for a long time before he answered "Someone hurt her bad."

Charlotte nodded and before Dickie knew what was going on, the little girl had slid off the kitchen chair and scampered into the living room and up to Elizabeth "Somebody hurt me too," she said in a tone of innocent empathy as she pulled her shirt up to reveal dark bruises. She climbed into Elizabeth's lap "I sorry you hurt," she reached up with her tiny hand and brushed away some of the tears that were still falling.

Elliot and Olivia had both pulled back and now watched in a mixture of wonder and horror. Olivia was first to speak. She turned to Elliot, deciding that action needed to be taken to help both girls "I'll call Cragen," she began "We'll take them down to the precinct and get Elizabeth's statement. Then we can figure out what to do about Charlotte."

Elliot nodded and rose, grabbing his coat and handing Elizabeth's to her. As Elizabeth stood up, Charlotte slid to the floor once again and cautiously followed Olivia to the phone.

When Olivia had hung up after informing Cragen of the situation, she turned to see Charlotte standing there, looking up at her. Olivia knelt down in front of the small girl "What is it honey?" she asked gently.

Charlotte's tiny hands went to Olivia's cheeks as she murmured in awed understanding "Somebody hurt you too."

Olivia nodded, her eyes misting over at the child's forwardness and innocence "Just a little," she reassured the little girl.

Charlotte nodded and hung her head "Don't like when people hurt."

Olivia reached forward and attempted to give the little girl a hug but she pulled away suddenly and curled into a ball "What is it sweetie?" Olivia asked, reaching out again.

"No, no," cried the tiny bundle of arms and legs. Elliot was standing by the open door of the apartment with Elizabeth and Dickie, waiting for Olivia and he wasn't fast enough to stop Charlotte who had stood up once again and shot past him through the open door.

Olivia was the first to go after the child. She followed Charlotte to the stairs. The little girl was running so fast that she missed the top step and started to fall. She emitted a terrified scream as Olivia caught her in mid air "Shh," Olivia whispered, rubbing the small child's back "Shh, it's okay. No one's gonna hurt you, I promise."

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Elliot leaned against the wall in the bullpen. He had been specifically forbidden by Cragen to go within ten feet of Munch and Fin while they talked to Elizabeth. Cragen was not about to let this case slip away because of Elliot's relationship to the victim. God only knew what kind of damage could be caused before they even had a case.

So in the bullpen he stood, watching as Dickie sat at Olivia's desk, fiddling with a paperclip. Elliot cleared his throat "What do you know about this Brent?" he asked his son, trying to appear casual.

"He's a jock," Dickie grumbled as the paperclip made its way from one hand to the other for the fifteenth time "Thinks he can get away with anything. Brags all the time that he can get any girl he wants."

Elliot took a step forward and sat down across from his son. He was familiar with the type. The entitled jackass with the superiority complex, the kid who thought he could get away with anything because he always had in the past. He took a deep breath "I'm sorry, I was so hard on you earlier about everything."

"It's okay," Dickie mumbled, still focusing on the paperclip in his hand. After a minute, he looked up at his dad "You're gonna get him for what he did to her right?"

"You'd better believe it," Elliot said firmly.

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"There was a big football game about a week ago," Elizabeth began in a shaky voice "Our school won. A friend of mine invited me to a party."

"Does this friend have a name?" Munch asked, trying not to push too far too fast.

"Colleen Sullivan," Elizabeth responded, finding it hard to pry her gaze from her folded hands on the table "The party was at the burger place across the street from the school. It was a lot of fun."

"How long were you there?" Fin asked.

"Until about eight thirty," she responded "Colleen and I started walking home when Brent came up behind us and asked us if we wanted a ride. I'd seen him around school before and he seemed like a nice guy so I thought it would be okay," she looked away again.

"Lizzie," Munch said softly "It's okay," he reached across and touched her hand.

Elizabeth took in a deep, shuddering breath before continuing "Colleen said that we probably shouldn't. We argued for a little bit. She said she'd rather walk so she did," she gave a short, humorless laugh "I guess she was right."

"What happened next?" Fin pressed gently.

"We got in the car," Elizabeth's breathing became more rapid as she fought against the memory "We drove for a few blocks and then he pulled over. I asked him what he was doing and he told me I was pretty," she brought her hands up to cover her face as she began to sob "I told him to start driving again but he grabbed me and pushed me into the backseat," she broke down.

Munch was the first one to come around to the other side of the table and wrap the teen in his arms "Shhh," he soothed as he rubbed her shoulder.

"What happened next?" Fin didn't want to push anymore. This wasn't any other girl, this was the daughter of one of their friends but the statement would be incomplete unless she told them exactly what Brent had done to her.

Elizabeth took another shaky breath "And that's when he… he raped me," she started sobbing full force, unable to make coherent words anymore.

"It's okay," Munch soothed "You did great honey." He put his hand on Elizabeth's shoulder as he walked her out of the interview room and pointed her in the direction of the squad room.

"Thanks," she murmured to Fin who handed her a handful of tissues.

"No problem girl," Fin smiled softly down at her as she walked past.

Once Elizabeth was out of earshot, the two detectives turned to Cragen. The captain stood silent for a moment before he spoke "Go pick this guy up," as Munch and Fin were walking away Cragen added "And I'm willing to overlook it if he shows up here with a broken nose."

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"Hey," Elizabeth said softly as she walked into the squad room.

Elliot and Dickie both got up and went over to her; first one, than the other embraced her "How are you doing?" Elliot asked, taking note of her red rimmed eyes.

"I'm okay," she sniffed, pulling a tissue from the bundle Fin had given her and wiping furiously at her eyes. She looked around the squad room "Where's Olivia?" she asked.

"She's talking to Charlotte," Elliot told her "When she's done we can go home." Elizabeth nodded and sank into the chair that Elliot offered to her.

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"Where do you live?" Olivia asked Charlotte gently.

The small girl looked down at the table, her expression too full of sadness for one so young. After a long time she whispered "Nowhere."

Olivia was surprised "What do you mean sweetie?"

"Grandma says she doesn't want me anymore," Charlotte whispered. She buried her face in her arms and began to sob.

Olivia walked over to the other side of the table and picked up the little girl. The poor thing was confused and alone. Olivia rubbed her back and murmured comfortingly "It's okay sweetie, it's okay."

"I miss Adam," she sobbed.

"Who's Adam?" Olivia asked.

"My brother," Charlotte clarified as she balled Olivia's shirt into her tiny fists "He goed away just like Mommy and Daddy."

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Olivia walked into the squad room after laying Charlotte down for a nap on one of the cots in the crib. She saw Elliot sitting at his computer "Hey," she said with a soft smile "Where are the kids?"

Elliot looked up at her "Munch and Fin brought Brent in and I figured it was best if they weren't here when they dragged his sorry ass through here. I gave them some cash for a cab."

Olivia nodded. She bent down to look at Elliot's computer screen "What are you working on?" she asked.

He smiled softly at her "You are gonna love me even more than you already do," he informed her.

"I don't think that's possible," Olivia smirked "But show me what you've got anyway."

"Charlotte Hunter," Elliot said, pulling a computer print out of the little girl's picture from a file.

Olivia took it and stared at the photo "That's her alright," she looked up at Elliot "How'd you get this?"

"Pure dumb luck," he said "Dickie said that Charlotte told him she didn't have a mom or a dad—"

"Yeah," Olivia cut in "She told me they were gone."

"I took a stab in the dark and went through car accident reports involving children," Elliot told her. He pulled more pages from the file "Daniel and Faith Hunter both died in an accident four months ago with their two children, Charlotte—"

"And her older brother Adam," Olivia finished, putting the pieces together in her mind.

"Yeah," Elliot pulled a picture of a little boy out of the folder. Adam greatly resembled his little sister. He had the same big gray green eyes. "The kids were turned over to—"

"Their grandmother," Olivia finished again.

"Could you stop doing that?" Elliot pleaded.

"Sorry," Olivia shrugged "Continue."

"Thank you," Elliot smirked, pulling up a picture of an elderly woman on his computer screen "Audrey Bryant, recently arrested for car jacking, assault and petty theft."

Olivia scowled "How recently?" she asked.

"They finally caught up with her this afternoon," he told her. "The car jacking occurred a week ago," he looked up from the screen again "The report said she had a little girl with her when she forced the other woman out of the car."

Olivia stood up "Where is this woman?" she asked angrily.

"She couldn't make bail," Elliot told her "She's awaiting trial."

"I wanna talk to her," Olivia said simply.

Elliot turned to her and took her hand "Liv," he said softly in a semi-warning tone "What's that gonna accomplish?"

"She was responsible for these children," Olivia pointed to the pictures on Elliot's desk "She abandoned one on a subway station bench and she might have killed the other one for all we know," her voice rose with each word.

Elliot stood up and pulled her close "Do you want me to go with you?" he asked, knowing that there was no way that Olivia was going to be able to keep her cool in this situation. And after the last time she had gone off on her own, he wasn't ready to watch her walk away.

"No," Olivia shook her head fervently "I can handle this. You should stay here in case Charlotte wakes up. She knows you," Olivia gave him a quick kiss and turned to leave "I love you," she whispered "I'll be back soon."

Elliot reached out to her again "Liv," he said quietly "Are you sure you don't want me to go with you? I mean, you just got out of the hospital today. What if the dizzy spells come back?"

Olivia turned to him and wrapped her arms around his neck "I'll be fine," she said reassuringly.

Elliot wasn't so sure. He felt incredibly uneasy about this "Be careful," he said in defeat.

"I will," Olivia promised as she pulled away and walked out of the squad room.

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Audrey Bryant looked up from the table as Olivia entered the prison interview room "Who the hell are you?" she asked disdainfully.

"I'm Detective Benson," Olivia said in a no nonsense tone as she sat down across from Bryant "I'd like to talk to you about your grandchildren Mrs. Bryant."

"What grandchildren?" Bryant asked in a tone of such complete indifference that it made Olivia's blood boil.

"Adam and Charlotte Hunter," Olivia said, the anger bubbling just below the surface of her words.

"I have no idea what you're talking about," Bryant met Olivia's hard stare with one of her own, challenging Olivia to say she was lying.

"Yes you do," Olivia said sternly "You had Charlotte with you when you stole that car. You ditched her on a bench in a subway station just before you were arrested. I'm not quite sure what you've done with Adam but you can be damned sure that I'm gonna find out," if looks could kill, Audrey Bryant would have been reduced to a pile of ashes by now but unfortunately, Olivia's stare was nowhere near as lethal as it appeared and the icy hearted woman was unharmed.

Bryant realized that she couldn't deny the existence of her grandchildren anymore "So you found the little brat," she spat hatefully "I was hoping she'd get herself killed."

Olivia wanted nothing more than to jump across the table and strangle the indifferent woman "How could you just leave her there?" she asked "How could you leave a three year old by herself like that?"

"Easy," Bryant replied coldly "I dropped her on her ass and walked away."

Olivia pressed her fingers to her temples as Bryant's face began to swim in front of her. Her head was hurting but the pain did nothing to stem her anger towards this woman "Where's her brother?" she asked.

"He ran away about a month ago," Bryant replied "I almost called the cops to find him but then I thought better of it," she looked down for a second "I always liked Adam, always so much quieter than his bratty sister, he knew how to take a beating," she looked up suddenly, realizing what she had just admitted to.

Olivia smiled mirthlessly. She leaned across the table "Thank you for hanging yourself. It saves me the rope," she sat back "I'm gonna personally make sure that you go away for a very long time." She stood up but gravity pulled her back into the chair instantly.

"Something wrong Detective?" Bryant asked. She took in Olivia's appearance thoughtfully "It looks like you know how to take a beating too, hmm?"

Olivia ignored her and stood up again, calling to the guard as she exited the room. Once she was outside, she leaned against the wall and closed her eyes. Driving back to the precinct was probably not the best idea.

"Are you alright?" the guard asked.

"Yeah," she said dismissively "Yeah, I just need a minute."

The guard nodded and passed Olivia on his way to retrieve Bryant and take her back to her cell.

Olivia found the energy to walk outside but when she was safely beyond the prison walls, the world began spinning. She reached out and found nothing to stop her from falling to the ground. She heard concerned voices above her as the world faded to black.

A/N: I'm aware of my evilness. I'll try to update tonight. Until then, thanks to all of you guys, you're so wonderful.


	6. Chapter 6: Unexpected

To Love and Be Loved

Chapter 6: Unexpected

A/N: Here it is, just like I said. This chapter is loaded with surprises. I hope you all enjoy. I decided not to leave any mean cliffhangers this time. It might take me a few days or more to get the next chapter up so I hope you guys can be patient with me. Thanks to all of you who reviewed. I love you people.

"I thought you said she would be fine," Elliot glared at Olivia's doctor "What happened?"

The doctor shrugged apologetically "She wasn't supposed to be back to work for another three days Detective. She was supposed to take it easy. She was obviously under some pretty severe stress. I'm going to go in there and explain the whole concept of rest to her again," he gave Elliot a warning look "And when I release her, I'm holding you personally responsible for making sure she listens to me this time."

Elliot nodded as the doctor disappeared down the hallway and turned back to the waiting area. He walked over to where Dickie, Elizabeth and Charlotte were sitting; Charlotte had woken up just before Elliot had gotten the call about Olivia's collapse and had begun crying when Elliot told her that he was going to leave.

"Is she going to be alright?" Elizabeth asked nervously.

"Yeah," Elliot managed a small smile "She'll be fine, she just needs to get some rest."

Charlotte climbed over Elizabeth's lap and into Elliot's. She curled up and yawned "Sweepy," she sighed.

Elliot looked down at the little girl who seemed perfectly at home in his arms even though she had known him less than three hours "It's been a long day for all of us," he observed when he saw the doctor walking back towards the waiting area. He got up, still holding the semi conscious Charlotte, and approached the doctor.

"She's as stubborn as they come," the doctor sighed in exasperation. "I can't talk sense to her. Maybe you'll have better luck," he sighed heavily again and walked past Elliot.

Elliot cast his gaze upwards. He didn't think he'd fare any better than the doctor had but he would try. Deciding that Olivia would probably not pick a fight with him if he brought Charlotte with him, he turned and called over his shoulder "I'll be back in a few minutes," he walked down the hall to Olivia's room.

She was lying down, her eyes closed when he entered "I told you I don't want to hear it," she said tiredly.

"It's good to see you too," Elliot smirked. He shifted Charlotte, who was now fast asleep, to his other shoulder.

Olivia's eyes popped open at the voice "Oh," she half gasped "Hi."

"Hi," Elliot replied, reaching a hand forward and clasping her hand tight "How are you feeling?"

Olivia groaned and closed her eyes again "I've got one hell of a headache," she gasped again, her eyes snapping to Charlotte.

"It's okay," Elliot said softly "She's asleep, swear as much as you want," he laughed.

"Good," Olivia murmured "I was going to call you to come pick me up," she said in her defense "But when I got outside I just…"

"Let gravity take over?" Elliot suggested.

Olivia laughed dryly "Something like that."

"How was talking to Bryant?" Elliot enquired "The doctor said you must have been severely stressed out to collapse like that."

Olivia took another look at Charlotte to make sure she was definitely asleep "The woman's a bitch," she said simply "She has no heart at all. She told me that Charlotte's brother knew how to take a beating."

Elliot's stomach turned and his grip on the small child tightened slightly "Did she say where he is?"

"She told me he ran away last month but I can tell that she's lying," she lowered her voice, afraid that Charlotte might wake up at any minute "Elliot, I think she killed him."

Elliot nodded somberly "I'll tell Cragen to send some uniforms to search her house. Maybe they'll find something."

Olivia attempted to pull herself into a sitting position "I'll go too," she said.

"Oh, no you aren't," Elliot told her. He gave her a gentle tap and was worried when that slight touch was enough to make her return to a lying down position "Doctor's orders, stay clear of work for a while."

"Elliot," she protested "I can't just—"

"You can and you will," Elliot told her "We can get along without you for a few days."

"But Elizabeth…" Olivia trailed off.

"Will be staying with us for the next week. Kathy said she'd feel better if we kept an eye on her. I think it would be good if someone was there with her during the day," he told her.

Olivia gave in "You'll call me if you find anything," she stated.

"Trust me," he smiled "No one will sneeze in the precinct without you knowing about it."

Olivia laughed "You're the best," she smiled.

Elliot smiled "I know," he said cockily.

She withdrew her hand from his just long enough to swat him on the arm "When do I get out of here?" she asked after a while.

"As soon as they get your tests back," Elliot told her "They just want to make sure it's safe to send you home."

Olivia nodded. She found herself staring at Charlotte again. The sleeping child's face was covered by her curly brown hair "What's going to happen to her?" she asked quietly.

Elliot looked down at the little girl. She'd been abandoned too many times already. He didn't think her fragile psyche would be able to withstand being abandoned by people she had already grown attached to. He scratched his head "We can't take care of a kid," he murmured unsurely "Can we?"

Olivia looked into the little girl's sleeping face. It wouldn't be fair to her to take her in unless they were prepared to do the best they could for her. But Olivia already felt a strong bond with the child. She looked at Elliot with uncertainty "Maybe, we could try…?" she murmured.

They sat there for a while in silence until the doctor came in. He looked troubled and Elliot picked up on it instantly "What's wrong?" he asked.

The doctor cleared his throat "Nothing… When you were admitted last week, we overlooked something in your initial blood work that I think it's important that you know about."

"Okay…" Olivia said, pushing herself into a sitting position and bracing herself for bad news.

The doctor glanced from her to Elliot. He cleared his throat again "You two… live together, correct?"

They both nodded "Is that important?" Olivia asked, becoming even more worried.

The doctor cleared his throat again causing both Olivia and Elliot to squirm. "Are you… I mean… do the two of you…" he looked incredibly uncomfortable. "Have the two of you been… intimate with one another?"

"Yes…" Olivia trailed off. In her mind she thought of all sorts of possibilities. She had slept with lots of men in her lifetime, what if she'd passed something on to Elliot. True, when she had been tested for HIV, she had been negative but that was nearly four years ago and there were so many other horrible things you could pass to someone by having sex with them. At that moment she felt like such a horrible person.

"What is this about?" Elliot asked. He was very uncomfortable with all the personal questions.

"Olivia," the doctor began "You're six weeks pregnant."

"Excuse me?" Olivia said, almost falling back onto the pillow once again "Did you just say… did you say I'm… pregnant?"

"Yes," the doctor told her.

Olivia looked at Elliot. Life had just gotten ten times more complicated.

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"I didn't rape anyone," Brent McCray protested as he sat in the interrogation room.

"That's not what she says," Munch glared at Brent over the top of his glasses.

"She's lying," Brent said simply "Yes I drove her home and yes we had sex but I didn't force her to do anything. She couldn't resist me," he gave a truly irritating grin "Can you blame her?"

"You're a real piece of work," Fin told him with a scowl.

"I'm telling you, I didn't rape her!" Brent shouted "She probably just had second thoughts. She's a cop's kid after all. She thought she'd get in trouble. I swear I didn't do anything."

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Olivia walked next to Elliot as they made their way out of the hospital "Is it just me," she mused "Or has life just become insane lately?"

"It's not just you," Elliot responded as Charlotte began to stir where she rested against his shoulder.

They passed the hospital gift shop and Olivia separated from Elliot briefly. She disappeared into the shop and reappeared a few minutes later, carrying a pure white teddy bear with gold wings. She handed it to the little girl, who was now very much awake "Here you go," she said with a soft smile as Charlotte stared at the toy with wide, gleeful eyes.

"Thank you," Charlotte whispered, hugging the bear to her chest as Elliot and Olivia continued on their way.

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Olivia found it impossible to fall asleep. At about one in the morning, she pulled herself out of Elliot's embrace, being careful not to wake him, and tiptoed into the living room. She wasn't surprised to see Elizabeth sitting on the couch. The teen jumped when she heard Olivia approaching "Sorry," Olivia whispered, taking a seat beside her.

"It's okay," Elizabeth whispered back "So you couldn't sleep either?"

Olivia nodded "Too much on my mind."

"Same here," Elizabeth shrugged "Brent made bail. I'm afraid that he might…" she trailed off, she wasn't sure she knew what she was afraid of. She was just afraid.

Olivia draped her arm around Elizabeth "Sweetie," she said softly "He's not gonna come anywhere near you, I promise."

"How can you promise something like that?" Elizabeth asked "You don't know what he's gonna do. I don't know what he's gonna do. I spoke with Colleen on the phone tonight and she said she saw him in the neighborhood. He knows where my family lives. What if he hurts Mom or Dickie?" she asked, her eyes brimming with unshed tears "He scares me."

Olivia was silent for a moment. Brent had been in the neighborhood of Kathy's house, Elizabeth's fears were not without merit. She made a mental note to tell Elliot about this development in the morning. She patted Elizabeth's shoulder "I promise you that I'll do whatever I can to make sure he doesn't hurt anyone else," she said firmly.

Elizabeth looked up and smiled "Thanks Olivia," she stifled a yawn.

"Why don't you try and get some sleep?" Olivia gently suggested.

Elizabeth nodded and got up "Goodnight Olivia," she said as she tiptoed back into the guest bedroom, being careful not to wake Charlotte as she entered.

Olivia smiled softly as she watched Elizabeth disappear into the room, then she closed her eyes and sighed. Brent's trial could not be over with quick enough. Elizabeth needed to feel safe and Olivia knew that she wouldn't feel safe until Brent was behind bars for good.

Her train of thought was interrupted by the sound of tiny, pajama clad feet on the hardwood floor. She opened her eyes to see Charlotte, dressed in the pink pajamas that they had bought for her on their way home from the hospital, timidly walking towards her. The child still clutched the winged bear that Olivia had bought for her.

"Hi sweetie," Olivia smiled, reaching her arms out to the girl "Is something wrong?" she picked Charlotte up and wrapped her in a hug.

"Can't sweep," Charlotte said in a voice, smaller than usual.

"There's a lot of that going on tonight," Olivia told her as she adjusted herself on the couch so that there was more of her lap for Charlotte to sit on.

"You can't sweep eiver?" Charlotte asked innocently as she curled into Olivia's embrace.

"Not really," Olivia admitted quietly, looking down into Charlotte's innocent face. She thought of Audrey and how cold she must have had to have been to abandon this sweet child. "Why can't you sleep?" Olivia asked.

"Bad things," Charlotte whispered, shutting her eyes tight and trembling slightly.

"What sort of bad things?" Olivia asked.

Charlotte shook her head "No talk," she said firmly.

"Okay," Olivia smiled, hugging Charlotte tighter "You wanna just sit here with me?" she asked.

Charlotte nodded and snuggled up against Olivia as close as she could. Charlotte liked this place. No one yelled at her or hit her or forgot to give her food when she was hungry and they had given her warm clothes and a bed and a toy. She loved her teddy bear. But no matter what, she still missed Adam, a lot.

Adam was taller and when Grandma would forget to feed them, Adam would get crackers or cookies or fruit and he would always share with her. And when Grandma got mad, he would stand in front of her and Charlotte would run and hide. Sometimes that worked and sometimes Grandma would come find her and hit her anyway. And at night, if she was cold, Adam would make sure she had more of the blanket to sleep under. She missed him a lot.

The morning that he didn't get up, she had run to Grandma because she had no idea what else to do. Adam had made a lot of sounds but nothing that sounded like words. Grandma had picked him up and carried him out of the house and into the shed in the backyard. When Charlotte asked about him later, Grandma had smacked her and told her she was stupid before saying that Adam was gone.

Charlotte shuddered in Olivia's arms "What is it honey?" Olivia asked "Are you cold?"

Charlotte shook her head and mumbled sleepily "Miss Adam."

Olivia rocked Charlotte back and forth gently, murmuring over and over again "It's okay sweetie, it's okay."

Charlotte was so comforted by the sound of Olivia's voice and the gentle motion of being rocked back and forth that she soon drifted off to sleep. Olivia smiled, deciding to sit there with Charlotte for a little while longer.

"Is everything alright out here?" came Elliot's voice.

Olivia looked up to see him standing in the open doorway of their bedroom, watching her and Charlotte carefully "How long have you been there?" she asked as he came and sat down beside her.

"Not long," he shrugged all though the answer he wanted to give was _Long enough to know that you were made to be a mother_ "What's wrong?" he asked her with a knowing look.

"Well," Olivia began "Elizabeth wanted to talk and then Charlotte couldn't sleep so I told her she could sit out here with me."

Elliot reached up and turned her face so they were gazing into each other's eyes "That's not what I meant Liv," he said softly but firmly "And you know it," he held her gaze as he rephrased his question "Why are you still up?"

Olivia sighed, dropping her face to look at Charlotte again "I can't stop thinking about Audrey," she said earnestly. "She was so cold and indifferent about leaving Charlotte alone and doing God knows what she did to Adam," she looked up at Elliot "I'm scared that..." she placed her hand on her stomach "What if I do something like that to our child?"

"Liv," Elliot said softly, pulling her into a tight hug "You could never be that way. It's just not in your nature not to be able to love."

Olivia shook her head "You don't know me," she whispered.

Elliot smiled tenderly "Nine years of partnership and three months of sharing the same bed and you think I don't know you?" he asked, almost incredulously.

"There are things," Olivia whispered, trying to keep her voice even as she felt her eyes burning with tears and she hid her face from Elliot "Things that you don't know… that I never told anyone, not even you. I'm not meant to do this Elliot," she concluded.

"Olivia," Elliot said firmly, placing a hand on her back and rubbing softly "Look at that little girl you're holding," he commanded.

Olivia looked at the small, relaxed, peacefully sleeping face "Yeah?" she asked.

"With what that little girl's been through," Elliot began "She never would have slept in your arms if she didn't trust you. I saw the way you were with her. I've seen the way that you are with all the kids we deal with on a daily basis. You were born to do this. You could never be anything but loving."

Olivia looked up, wiping her eyes "Do you really think so?" she asked, still incredibly unsure of herself.

Elliot leaned in and kissed her, wondering just what had happened that had made her this hesitant about something that came so naturally to her "I absolutely do," he answered.

Olivia wiped at her eyes again but it was no use, the tears came anyway "Thanks," she smiled. She couldn't explain why but his words meant so much to her. She still doubted herself but it made her feel better to know that he believed she could do it.

Olivia yawned and Elliot smirked "Wanna come back to bed?" he asked.

Olivia nodded then looked down "What about Charlotte?" she asked, knowing that the little girl would probably react badly to waking up alone tonight.

"It couldn't hurt to let her sleep with us just for tonight," Elliot shrugged, hoping that this wouldn't be a recurring event; nothing put the nail in the coffin of friendly bedroom flirtatiousness like a kid in the bed with you as he had learned from Maureen's never ending ability to be frightened by everything and Kathy's ability to give in to her daughter's lamentations. It was a practice he had swiftly put an end to when Maureen was five by doing the one thing that Kathy had never been willing to do, talk to his child about why she was afraid.

"Okay," Olivia agreed sleepily, standing up and walking with Elliot into their bedroom.


	7. Chapter 7: Frightening Turn of Events

To Love and Be Loved

Chapter 7: Frightening Turn of Events

A/N: I'm sorry to say, this will be the only update today. I'll try to get the next chapter up soon. I'm really enjoying writing this story so I must warn you that a lot of crazy things are about to happen. I hope I didn't get carried away. Enjoy and thanks to all of you who are reading and reviewing. I hope this is as much fun to read as it is to write.

Elliot was the first to open his eyes the next morning. He rolled over and smiled. Charlotte was sound asleep next to Olivia. He gently leaned over Charlotte and placed a soft kiss on Olivia's lips "Good morning," he smiled.

Olivia's eyes fluttered open and she smiled back at him "Good morning yourself," she sat up and looked down at Charlotte. She placed a gentle hand on the child's shoulder "Charlotte, sweetie, it's morning."

Charlotte rolled over, opening her eyes. Her lips curled into a smile. She was happy that she was still with the nice people. She'd been afraid that it had been a dream. She shot up and into Olivia's arms "Good morning!" she squealed happily. Then she separated from Olivia and rocketed across the bed to Elliot, embracing him fervently "Good morning!" she bounced up and down.

"Good morning Charlotte," Elliot said, giving the child a kiss on the forehead just before the little girl slid off the bed and, with teddy bear safely in hand, she ran out of the bedroom and to the room that she was supposed to be sharing with Elizabeth. She walked over to Elizabeth's bed and climbed up "Lizzie! Lizzie!" she said happily "Morning time!"

Elizabeth sat up, surprised that she had actually been able to get to sleep the night before, and smiled at Charlotte who had dropped into a sitting position. "Hey Charlotte," she said a little groggily as she rubbed her eyes.

"Hi Lizzie," Charlotte said, softly.

Elizabeth slid out of bed and padded to the bathroom while Charlotte went to go find Elliot and Olivia again.

Olivia and Elliot were both in the kitchen. Olivia was marveling at their now full cabinets "When did you have time to go shopping?" she asked.

"I'd like to take the credit," Elliot embraced her from behind and laid his head on her shoulder "But Casey did this for me while you were in the hospital, washed the dishes too."

"Seriously?" Olivia smiled, making a mental note to thank Casey the next time she saw her. Just at that moment, Charlotte came in and Olivia knelt down in front of her "Are you hungry sweetie?"

Charlotte nodded and Elliot swept her into the air, setting her down on one of the chairs.

Olivia grabbed the new box of Cheerios from the cabinet she had previously been admiring and poured some into a bowl for Charlotte. She set the bowl on the table in front of Charlotte and handed her a spoon.

Charlotte ignored the spoon and instead began to eat the Cheerios with her fingers.

Elliot and Olivia just smiled. Olivia turned to get a glass of juice for the little girl "We should get her a highchair or a booster seat or something," she said, observing how Charlotte couldn't sit in the chair without being completely hidden by the table top "She's so small," she added sadly as she put the glass of juice down next to the bowl of cereal.

Elliot nodded and sat down beside Charlotte. He took a bite of the bagel he had snagged but as he was chewing, he got a look at the clock for the first time that morning "Oh no," he shot out of the chair "I'm gonna be late if I don't hurry." He disappeared into the bedroom.

"I'll be right back, okay?" Olivia told Charlotte as she followed after Elliot. Charlotte nodded and waved a hand at Lizzie, who had just emerged from the bathroom.

Olivia walked into the bedroom to see Elliot hurriedly pulling on his clothes "Hey," she said softly, laying a hand on his shoulder only seconds after he had pulled his shirt over his head "It's not even 7:00 yet.."

He turned and sighed "Cragen wants me out at Bryant's place when they start searching."

Olivia's gaze dropped. She felt better that Elliot was going to be there but something inside of her made her feel compelled to be part of the search.

Elliot stepped forward and placed a finger under her chin, bringing her gaze up to meet his "I know you want this Liv," he began softly "But you have to rest."

"I hate being stuck on the sidelines," she sighed then managed to curve her lips into a small smile "Find something that will send that bitch to jail for the rest of her life."

Elliot leaned in and kissed her "I will," he promised as he finished pulling up his jeans. "I love you," he said as he grabbed his gun, wallet and badge.

"Love you too," she said as she followed him out of the bedroom "Be careful today."

Elliot bent down at the table to give Charlotte a hug "I will," he smiled. He stood up again and went to give Elizabeth a hug "I'm secretly putting you in charge," he whispered "Don't let Liv leave this apartment without you or someone else."

Elizabeth nodded "You know she'll kill you if she finds out about this," she whispered back.

"Find out about what?" Olivia had caught the end of Elizabeth's sentence and had the strangest feeling that it had something to do with her.

Elliot's face flushed only slightly as he pulled away from Elizabeth "Nothing," he said almost too quickly.

"Mm-hmm," Olivia murmured disbelievingly and she followed Elliot to the door "Don't give me that line. You were asking her to baby sit me," she sounded irritated.

Elliot turned to her and pulled her into the hallway, out of earshot of the children "I'm sorry," he whispered, trying to rein in his emotions "But after what happened last week and what happened yesterday I hope you can forgive me for being worried about you."

Olivia saw the look in his eyes and stepped forward, embracing him tightly "I know you're worried," she reassured him as she choked on her own emotions "I'm just going to have to get used to this rest and relaxation thing."

"I'll call you the second we find anything," Elliot promised as he pulled away, giving her one last quick kiss. "Bye."

"Bye," Olivia waved as he disappeared down the hallway. Once he was out of sight, she turned and went back into the apartment.

Charlotte had finished her Cheerios and her juice and was watching the front door of the apartment intently. When Charlotte saw Olivia, her posture relaxed significantly. Charlotte slid off the chair and walked over to Olivia, hugging her legs "I'm sowwy," she whispered.

Olivia bent down and lifted the little girl into her arms "For what honey?" she asked.

"I made you leave," Charlotte's face was scrunched up and there were tears in her eyes.

"No, no, no honey," Olivia said quickly "We didn't leave, we just went outside to talk."

"Is he mad?" Charlotte asked.

"No," Olivia told her, carrying her to the living room and sitting on the couch "He's not mad at you. He just had to go to work."

"Okay," Charlotte accepted Olivia's explanation and smiled "What we do now?"

Olivia laughed but then stopped to think. She didn't know what they should do. She looked imploringly at Elizabeth who cleared her throat "Do you like to sing songs Charlotte?" she asked.

The little girl's face lit up "Yes," she nodded emphatically.

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"Ground penetrating radar didn't find anything," Melinda told Elliot as he came out of the house into the back yard.

Elliot nodded, too stunned by what they had just found in the house to say anything. The house didn't look like a child had ever lived there, things were too neat. There wasn't even a picture of either of the children on the walls. He had almost thought they had come to the wrong house until they had searched the tiny space in the attic. An old threadbare blanket lay on the floor along side a half full glass of water and a toy truck with only one wheel. The room was drafty and Elliot felt the anger boil up inside him that anyone could force another human being, let alone a child, live this way.

He rubbed his forehead with his hand and gazed around the yard, just trying to clear his head. His eyes landed on the garden shed. CSU was still searching the house and Melinda had only been looking in the yard, so no one had been in there yet.

Elliot approached the shed, Melinda following behind him. He pushed against the door which came away far too easily; the rotted wood nearly crumbled. Once they were inside, it took a while for their eyes to adjust.

The first thing Elliot saw was that the floor was littered with all sorts of trash. He stepped over it carefully until he reached the far wall. There, wrapped in a dirty blanket was a little boy whom Elliot recognized instantly. It was Adam. Elliot felt for a pulse, it was weak. He turned to Melinda "Call a bus," he said as he lifted the little boy into his arms. He was frail and weighed barely anything.

Melinda gave a nod of recognition as she backed out of the shed.

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Olivia heard the buzzer of the apartment and she pulled herself off the floor where she and Elizabeth had been entertaining Charlotte for the past few hours. She walked over and pressed the button for the intercom "Who is it?" she asked.

"Casey," came the redhead's voice. "Can I come up?"

"Sure," Olivia smiled. Behind her, she could hear Elizabeth and Charlotte still laughing. She walked over to them and smiled, lifting Charlotte into her arms "We've got company," she said in a light voice.

Before either girl could ask who it was, Casey was knocking on the door. Olivia walked over and opened it "Hi," she smiled.

"Hi," Casey greeted. She smiled at Charlotte "Hey there."

"Hi," Charlotte said quietly, clutching her teddy bear tight.

"Come on in," Olivia offered and Casey walked past her into the apartment.

The two women sat on the couch "How are you feeling?" Casey asked softly.

Olivia looked down at Charlotte then back up at Casey. She smiled "Over eighteen hours without fainting," she responded with a small laugh.

"That's good," Casey said uneasily "We were all worried when we heard what had happened."

Olivia could tell Casey was trying to say something. She looked down at Charlotte "Do you want some lunch?" she asked the little girl. Charlotte nodded and Olivia looked in Elizabeth's direction "Liz, could you go make her a sandwich please?"

Elizabeth got the meaning behind Olivia's look "Sure," she said, reaching a hand out to Charlotte "Come on," she smiled and Charlotte followed Elizabeth into the kitchen.

By having Charlotte in her lap while they talked, Olivia had hoped to stave off talk of what had happened to her or the fact that she was pregnant, a fact that she wanted desperately to confide to Casey but just as desperately wanted to keep hidden for as long as possible. But the part of her that wanted to confide everything to her friend was slowly winning out. She leaned back against the couch cushions and closed her eyes "I still have headaches," she admitted "They're supposed to go away soon but they haven't. I'm just glad they haven't gotten worse."

"Oh," Casey said quietly "And how are things going with your new addition?"

For a moment, Olivia was afraid that Casey already knew about her pregnancy but it didn't take her long to realize that Casey was referring to Charlotte "We bought her some clothes yesterday. We're gonna have to go get some more soon but we have a few outfits."

"How are you handling it?" Casey asked.

"Better than I thought I would," Olivia admitted "She apparently brings out the mother in me," she laughed a bit then became serious again "I hope I can be what she needs."

"You definitely can," Casey said firmly "You and Elliot together can't go wrong."

Olivia smiled; she was glad for her friend's vote of confidence "Thanks Case."

"You're welcome," Casey grinned, shifting on the couch "Now," she smirked "I wasted my lunch hour to come here, you'd better have something juicy to tell me."

Olivia pulled back "What?" she asked, shocked.

"Come on," Casey pushed "You know something you aren't telling me, I know you are."

"I am not," Olivia protested weakly.

"Spill it," Casey pressed with a smile "Spill it."

"Casey," Olivia sighed. Casey simply stared back at her until Olivia finally caved "Just don't tell anyone."

"Oh," Casey grinned and leaned forward "Is this even bigger than the time that you told me not to tell anyone that you had started sleeping with Elliot?"

Olivia rolled her eyes "Yeah, and look how well that turned out."

"Hey," Casey protested "I kept my mouth shut. It was John who told Fin and Fin told Morales and Morales told everyone else."

"And who was the one who told John?" Olivia asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Um… well," Casey was flustered momentarily "Pillow talk is inadmissible."

"Only if you're married," Olivia reminded her "You know that."

Casey giggled "Well…" she trailed off "You tell me your secret and I'll tell you mine," she offered.

It was at this point that Olivia noticed that she hadn't seen Casey's left hand since she had entered the apartment "Oh Casey," she grinned "Are you two...? Really?"

"No fair," Casey objected "Now you have to tell me your secret."

"Okay," Olivia conceded, leaning forward and whispering in Casey's ear.

Casey hugged her friend "That's great!" she squealed "Congratulations!"

"Shhh," Olivia put a finger to her lips "We haven't told Elliot's kids yet. I'm not sure how they'll take it. I mean," she looked down "With Kathy and all…"

"I won't say a word," Casey swore. She looked down at her watch "Oh no, I have to get going." Before Casey could stand up, the phone rang.

"Olivia," Elizabeth called from the kitchen "Dad needs to talk to you."

Olivia stood up and walked into the kitchen, taking the phone from Elizabeth "Hi," she smiled into the receiver.

"Your cell's not on," was the first thing out of his mouth.

Olivia picked up on the tension in his voice instantly "It's off," she said slowly "I'm supposed to be resting remember," she reminded him, trying not to rub it in "What's wrong?"

"We found him," was all Elliot could say at first.

Olivia glanced around her. Elizabeth and Charlotte were at the table, neither one seemed to be paying attention to the conversation. Still, she kept her voice low as she asked "Adam? You found him?" her heart felt heavy all of a sudden. Even the slim light of being able to put Bryant away for possibly the rest of her miserable life wasn't enough to give the moment its silver lining.

"Yes," Elliot answered and then he said the words that Olivia wasn't expecting to hear "Liv, he's… he's alive."

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Olivia rushed down the hall. She had left Charlotte at the apartment with Elizabeth and after convincing Elizabeth that since she was going to meet up with Elliot, then it was okay to leave the apartment alone, she had hailed a cab to take her to the hospital.

She found him right outside a room in the ICU. He was staring through the window at the small boy who lay motionless in the bed, the beeping machines the only indication of life in the tiny body. Olivia stopped beside him and her mouth fell open. She recognized the boy from the photo but he was so much thinner now, so much paler. She touched Elliot's arm, getting his attention "He," she whispered, finding it hard to speak "Where…?"

"The tool shed behind the house," he answered simply "He'd been in there a while," he kept his eyes on the motionless boy "They say it's a miracle he's still alive."

Olivia leaned against him for support "Oh God," she whispered. At that moment, jail was too good for Audrey Bryant. "That bitch," she said angrily "That cold hearted bitch."

Elliot nodded "How could someone do that to a child?" he had seen so many things in his work but the kids always got to him.

"How bad is he?" Olivia asked, afraid of finding out the answer. Somehow, through knowing this boy's sister she had come to love this boy without ever meeting him. He was only six years old. He was too young to have suffered this much.

"He was pretty much in a coma when I found him," Elliot explained "They aren't sure if he can come out of it. He… He's just so weak," he broke down at the same time as Olivia and the two of them held each other as they cried for a boy they hardly knew.

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"You sure they gonna come back?" Charlotte asked as Elizabeth spread the cards out on the floor.

"Of course they will," Elizabeth said warmly.

Charlotte turned away from the cards and hugged her teddy bear close "Don't wanna play," she said quietly.

Elizabeth nodded and without saying a word about it, gathered the cards up again and put them away "Want me to tell you a story?" she asked.

"Okay," Charlotte said quietly.

Elizabeth gathered the little girl up and carried her into the bedroom and sat on the bed with her "Don't worry," she smiled softly "They'll be back." At that moment Elizabeth heard a key in the lock "See what I mean?" she said with a small smile. She stood up and walked to the bedroom door, opening it a crack. As soon as she saw what was in the main room of the apartment, she shut the door tight.

"What wrong Lizzie?" Charlotte asked.

Elizabeth was very pale, she picked Charlotte up and opened the closet door "Charlotte," she said seriously, her voice full of fear "I need you to be really quiet for me, okay?"

"Okay Lizzie," Charlotte smiled innocently as Elizabeth closed the closet door.

Elizabeth opened the bedroom door and walked out. The best thing she could do now was keep him away from the bedroom and Charlotte. She took a deep shuddering breath, trying to figure out if she could reach the phone in time. She inched forward just as he saw her. She ran for the kitchen phone but he grabbed her ankle and she fell flat on her face "Stay away from me," she moaned as blood spurted from her nose.


	8. Chapter 8: Assurances

To Love and Be Loved

Chapter 8: Assurances

A/N: Here's the next chapter. I hope you guys like it. There are surprises ahead.

Dickie didn't even notice that his house keys had been taken until he finally decided to leave the park and head home once again. His mother was probably worried about him. That was fine with him. Let her worry, let her think about how what she had done affected the rest of them, let her ponder why he was mad. The only reason he decided to go home just because Jeremy and Tim were heading home and Tim was taking the basket ball with him. Dickie could have continued his walk but he just wanted to go home, not because of his mother but just because.

He had come home immediately after school because his mother had called him at lunch on his cell phone to tell him that he needed to pack because they were going to stay at Grandma's for a few days. He'd come home probably earlier than expected because he had over heard a conversation between his mother and her boyfriend Stan. His blood boiled simply remembering what he had overheard.

"We can have a fresh start now," Stan had said. His reassuring voice was sickening in Dickie's ears as he stood hidden in the shadows of the hallway.

"I know," his mother had sighed "I love you Stan but I'm not sure this was right."

"There was no way we could have been happy with you carrying another man's baby," Stan tried to sound convincing.

"I know," Kathy whispered again and Dickie thought he heard tears in his mother's voice "I just…"

"I'm sorry Kath," Stan said softly "But you can't undo it now. I thought we had agreed that this was the best thing. The abortion was the only way that we could be together."

It was at this moment that Dickie had chosen to step forth from the shadows "You got rid of it?" he asked, more surprised than anything else.

"Dickie," Kathy had looked at him with red rimmed eyes "I," she looked at Stan "We…"

"Did you talk to Dad first?" Dickie asked and when his mother's gaze dropped to the floor he had his answer.

"Your mother is very upset right now," Stan said.

"Shut up!" Dickie shouted "You don't tell me what to do."

Stan stood up "I'm going to be your stepfather in a week. Get used to listening to me kid!"

Kathy stood up and tried to intervene but Dickie turned his anger on her "You're marrying him?" he asked angrily.

Kathy nodded "You'll understand when you're older."

That was the last straw for Dickie "Don't say that. I don't think I'll ever understand. This guy is bad news Mom and you're marrying him. I hate him! And I hate you!"

He didn't look back at his mother's shocked and hurt expression as he ran out of the house. He started running and didn't stop until he reached the park. Jeremy and Tim, a couple of friends from school, were playing basketball and they called out to him to join them. Dickie had dropped his jacket on a nearby bench and joined a very animated game of horse.

When he reached his house, hoping to sneak in without his mother noticing him, and found that he was without his keys, he thought the fell out of his pocket somewhere along the way to or from the park. The keys weren't his top priority as he swallowed his pride and rang the doorbell.

His mother opened the door. Her eyes were redder than they had been before and there was a bruise forming on her cheek. Her eyes welled up when she saw him but all she said was "Hi."

Dickie walked into the house and looked around "Where's Mr. Boss Man?" he asked dryly.

"He left," Kathy replied, her hand going to her cheek "He's not going to be coming back. I loved him but I love my kids more."

"What about the baby?" Dickie asked "I don't understand a lot of this stuff but shouldn't you have asked Dad before you got rid of it?"

Kathy looked down "I'm going to have to explain that to him," she whispered, her voice full of shame.

Dickie just shrugged and went up to his room to play video games.

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Brent's hand was clamped tight over her mouth as he dragged her to his car which was parked behind the apartment building. She squirmed and struggled and dragged her feet as much as she possibly could. When they reached the car, Brent shifted to get the keys out of his pocket and then cursed when he pulled out the wrong set; the set he had taken from Dickie's coat pocket at the park. He shifted again and that's when Elizabeth made her move.

She bit his hand and elbowed him in the ribs. He fell backwards, cursing and muttering. Elizabeth started running. She pondered going back to the apartment but when she heard Brent's footfalls behind her she forgot all about that idea. She ran down the block, using all her energy for running. She didn't even consider calling out for help. All she thought about was putting as much distance between herself and Brent as possible.

She ran thirty blocks without anyone taking notice of her. She rounded the corner down an alley and finally noticed that Brent wasn't following her anymore. She finally took notice of her surroundings. She had no idea where she was. She had no money and no cell phone. Her nose still trickled blood from time to time. She stepped out onto the street and looked around for a street sign.

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"We have to leave," Olivia whispered to Elliot after speaking to a nurse. "We aren't family and visiting hours are over."

Elliot nodded and pried his gaze away from the small boy "I bet the kids are starting to worry," he said softly.

The two walked out of the hospital. The drive home was silent. There was no talk about what they would tell Charlotte or what they would do when Adam woke up… if Adam woke up. There was no discussion of how they couldn't possibly take in two kids with a baby of their own on the way and their was no talk of how they both knew that there was no way that they could not take in both children.

There was just the silence. It wasn't comfortable, it wasn't awkward, it didn't have a label, it was just silence.

They reached the parking garage and parked the car. On the walk back to the building, Elliot had his arm around Olivia's waist and she turned to him every few steps to look into his eyes but still, they said nothing.

They entered the building that way and walked up to the apartment still holding on to one another. It wasn't until they reached the open door of the apartment that they separated, both automatically shifting into cop mode.

"Oh God," Olivia whispered, stepping forward. She entered the apartment followed closely by Elliot "Elizabeth!" she called out fearfully "Charlotte!" There was no answer.

Elliot pulled out his cell phone and called Cragen. While he was waiting for the captain to answer his eyes roamed the room, scanning for anything. It was then that he saw the blood "Olivia," he called to her softly, pointing with a trembling finger at the red pool on the floor.

"Oh dear God," Olivia sank to her knees beside the puddle. There was a lot of blood. She shot to her feet again and ran to the bedrooms, lifting the covers and peering under beds. She was frantic, cop mode had been replaced with terrified parent mode.

It wasn't until she opened the closet in the guest bedroom and saw Charlotte, curled into a ball against the back wall, hugging her teddy bear tight, that she relaxed. "Charlotte," she whispered, kneelin in front of the little girl "Thank God."

The little girl peered over the top of her knees and slid herself across the floor and into Olivia's waiting arms. She didn't say anything. She simply snuggled as close to Olivia and held tight to her shirt with her tiny hand as she clung to her teddy bear with the other arm.

Olivia stood up "It's okay, sweetie" she said soothingly as she carried Charlotte out to where Elliot was standing "It's okay."

Elliot looked up and sighed in relief. At least he knew that Charlotte was safe. If only he knew that Elizabeth was okay.

"Lizzie go away," Charlotte whimpered "Bad man take her."

Elliot stepped forward, pouncing onto the one lead he had "What bad man?" he asked instantly.

Charlotte shook her head "Lizzie told me be quiet. Closed the door, then voices." She hid her face and started to sob.

Elliot stepped forward, feeling bad that he had pushed Charlotte too fast. He placed a hand on the child's back "Shhh," he whispered "It's gonna be okay."

Olivia and Elliot shared a look as Charlotte cried between them. They both knew what they had to do next.

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Seth Gabriel sat in his cab. He had just dropped off his last fair of the day. He was exhausted. He was about to head back to drop the cab off when someone in the distance caught his eye. She couldn't have been older than fourteen. She looked frightened, her nose was bloody. He wondered if she was okay. He stepped out of the cab and walked towards her "Miss," he said in a soft voice that made the teenager jump.

Elizabeth thought about running away from the man and almost did. But it was dark out now and she still wasn't sure where she was. The nose bleed was making her woozy. So she stayed where she was "Can you help me?" she asked.

"Sure," Seth said with a soft smile, reaching his hand out to her "Let's get you something to clean up that blood." Elizabeth nodded and followed him back to his cab, gratefully accepting the wad of tissues he handed her. "So," Seth began as he watched her dab at her bloody face "Where do you live?"

The simple question got an unusual response from Elizabeth. "No," she said shakily "I can't go back there. He has the keys. I don't know how he got the keys but if I go back there, he's gonna find me. Or my family." She was starting to ramble.

"Okay, okay," Seth said soothingly "Is there somewhere I can take you where you'll be safe?"

Elizabeth nodded and Seth opened the door of the cab for her "16th precinct," she responded "My Dad's a cop, he'll probably be there."

Seth nodded and got in the driver's seat of the cab "Don't worry," he smiled at Elizabeth in the rearview mirror "I'll get you there."

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Kathy knocked on Dickie's door. He didn't make any acknowledgement so she opened it and cleared her throat softly "Um…" she began quietly "Your Dad just called. We need to go down to the precinct. Elizabeth's missing."

Dickie shot up "My keys!" he shouted, finally understanding what had really happened to them and hating himself for not thinking more about it when he had discovered that they were missing.

"What?" Kathy asked, confused

Dickie didn't respond. He simply grabbed his coat and followed his mother out to the car, feeling completely responsible for Elizabeth being missing. He didn't even have to ask, he knew what had happened and he was afraid.

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"Hey, take it easy," Brent McCray protested as Munch and Fin shoved him roughly through the doors of the squad room.

"Quit your whining," Fin said angrily.

Munch leaned in close to Brent and pointed across the squad room where Elliot was talking to Olivia. Elliot wasn't looking in their direction, which was probably a good thing "See that scary looking guy over there?" Munch asked.

"Yeah, so what," Brent responded nonchalantly.

"That's the father of the girl you raped. The angry, cop father," Munch clarified "Now, if you don't quit your complaining, I'm gonna let him take you out into the alley and shoot you."

"I didn't rape anybody," Brent stuck to his story even though he had grown several shades paler. He kept his mouth shut as Munch and Fin pushed him into an interrogation room.

Elliot turned just in time to see Brent disappear "I swear I'll kill him," he seethed.

Olivia placed a hand on his arm and tried to calm him down even though she was feeling the same way "That won't get us anywhere," was all she could think of to say "Let's see what Munch and Fin can get out of him," she leaned her head back and sighed, closing her eyes "Then we can kill him."

"Thanks," Elliot said flatly, slightly heartened by the knowledge that he wasn't the only one who would love to murder this kid. He turned to Olivia and noticed that she was pressing her fingers to her temples, hard. He turned her towards him and put his hands on her shoulders "Headaches again?" he asked.

Olivia shook her head feebly. The slight motion made her nauseas "I'm fine," she lied.

"Go lie down in the crib," he told her, brushing a piece of hair out of her face. "I bet Charlotte's getting lonely up there."

"She's sound asleep last time I checked on her," Olivia told him as she felt herself swaying. She stepped forward and almost didn't make it to her desk chair.

"I can handle things down here," Elliot told her, placing a hand on her shoulder and rubbing softly "You should get some rest."

"Not until that creep tells us where Lizzie is," she replied firmly, cradling her head in her arms and keeping her eyes shut tight "This'll pass in a couple of minutes," she assured him.

"I'll call you as soon as we know anything," he promised.

"Don't kill him without me," she commanded as she pulled herself up and started walking towards the stairs.

"I promise," Elliot said, managing a small smile as he followed behind her.

It was a good thing he was behind her because she nearly collapsed as soon as she had reached the first step. He caught her and helped her up the stairs.

"I'm fine, I'm fine," she insisted "It's almost passed now."

"You are not fine," Elliot told her, watching her waver the second he let her stand on her own. He would have said more and she would have objected if both of them hadn't fallen silent, having heard a voice wafting up the stairs from the bullpen.

"Uncle Don, do you know where my Dad is?"

"Elizabeth," Elliot and Olivia said at the exact same moment.

Olivia waveringly made her way to the top of the stairs and Elliot had to move fast to keep her from falling "It's passing, it's passing," she told him.

Elliot didn't believe a word of it but instead of insisting that she go lie down, he helped her down the stairs; he knew that Olivia was just as eager to see Elizabeth as he was.

As soon as they entered the bullpen, the two felt a huge weight lifted off their shoulders "Elizabeth?" Elliot questioned as Olivia leaned against him for support.

"Daddy, Olivia," the teenager ran to them and hugged them tight "I'm so glad to see you guys."

Elliot and Olivia hugged her back "You have no idea how good it is to know that," Olivia sniffled.

"Oh my Gosh," Elizabeth said suddenly "Where's Charlotte? Is she okay?"

"Shhhhh," Elliot soothed "She's fine, she's upstairs sleeping."

"No I'm not," a small voice at their feet piped up and they all looked down to see Charlotte standing there.

Elizabeth bent down and picked her up "Hi," she smiled at the little girl.

"Hi," Charlotte smiled back, her little hands touching Elizabeth's face "You hurt?"

"It's not that bad," Elizabeth assured her as she hugged the child and was hugged by her father and Olivia. It felt good to be back with them again.

"Elizabeth," Kathy called from the door of the squad room and Elizabeth turned to see her mother and brother standing there. The two cam and embraced her.

"I'm so sorry," Dickie told her.

"For what?" Elizabeth asked.

"He took my keys Liz. I didn't even realize. I'm sorry," Dickie clarified.

"It's okay," Elizabeth told him "It's not your fault. Besides," she smiled slightly "I'm fine."


	9. Chapter 9: Hideaway

To Love and Be Loved

Chapter 9: Hideaway

A/N: Well it's been a while, hasn't it? Well, here goes nothing.

GiLmOrE-fan-SVU-feak: I hope you're still reading, considering how long it's been since I updated this one.

AliasCSINYFriendsER: The line to kill Brent starts behind Elliot LOL.

Marish89: I'm glad I'm so good at writing stubbornness LOL. Olivia's stubbornness is based on my stubbornness but she's more mature about it. Which just goes to show you how immature I am :P!

TV Angel 711: Yes, Elliot should beat up Brent but mean old Cragen with his "Don't do it unless you wanna get suspended"ness ruins all my violent perp-slamming fun.

Onetreefan: You rock more! If anyone here hasn't read her story "Threads" don't even bother reading any further in this chapter. Look up "Threads" and spend the rest of your afternoon reading that.

SVUlover: I'm sorry the wait has been so long. Thanks so much for your review.

Mhopeg: I'm glad you got my little reference with the cab driver's name. I wanted to show that there was still good in the world of my stories even though so many horrible things are going on. Again, Cragen is ruining all my "Kill the bastard" fun, so this chapter will be, sadly, blood free. I hope I haven't made you too anxious, making you wait so long for an update.

Ad Hominem Argument: That was the intention LOL. It's not a good suspense story unless you get scared out of your ever loving mind once in a while.

Hope06: Yes, Elizabeth is okay, physically.

Crazy4smiley67: Thank you so much. I hope I can keep that balance going.

Rockstargoddes101: I hope you haven't forgotten about this story since it's taken me so long to update. Thank you so much for sticking by all my haphazard updating.

Octoberbaby11: I really have to keep apologizing for my weird inspirations. They strike at the oddest times and I find myself updating things that it's been months since I've updated and more often than not, starting new stories that get in the way of everything else.

: Hope I haven't left you hanging too long. As I've said already, I'm a haphazard mess when it comes to updating most times. If you and all my readers can find it in your hearts to forgive me, I'll try to make good on most of my stories.

"That's an interesting key chain," Olivia observed, standing across the table from Brent. Her headache had passed and she had taken over the interrogation with only minimal objection from Cragen. She pointed to the long flat piece of plastic that lay on the table "You mind telling me why you carry a key chain that has another boy's name on it?" she tried her hardest not to smirk. The kid was an idiot. Olivia herself had given that key chain to Dickie.

Brent squirmed. "I… I found it," he offered lamely.

"You, found it?" Olivia asked, pacing from one end of the table to the other. "I don't think so," she placed both hands in front of her on the table and leaned across so that she was face to face with Brent "We've got you cold. It might be easier for you if you talked. And I'd give up that consensual sex story if I were you. See," she leaned even closer to him "You're eighteen. Do you know what that means?"

The jock simply shook his head, unable to think of anything to say.

"We've got you for statutory no matter what. And this," she leaned back and pointed to the key chain "This, proves kidnapping," she leaned across the table again "I'd be really nervous right now if I were you."

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Cragen leaned his forehead against the window of the interrogation room "Why did I let you two talk me into letting her go in there?"

"Because she's less likely to cause him bodily harm," Elliot suggested. He stood beside Huang, trying not to explode through the door and kill the kid "She had slightly more control than I do. And besides," he added "She knows the kill shot belongs to me."

Cragen sighed at the very same moment that Brent cracked and began to confess everything.

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The apartment was still officially a crime scene. Olivia and Elliot had been escorted through to get some clothes and they're tooth brushes but that was it. They had decided to stay in a hotel for a couple of nights, not just because of the crime scene in their own home but because it didn't seem fair to ask Elizabeth, who still insisted on staying with them, to set foot in that place so soon after she had been attacked their.

Olivia tucked Charlotte into one of the beds and moved to where Elliot sat near the window. She took a chair beside him and stared out into the parking lot just as he was doing. He was on high alert and she didn't blame him; she felt the fear creeping over her skin as if it were some living thing intent on devouring her.

"What a day," she whispered, attempting to make light conversation while at the same time, trying not to wake Charlotte or attract the attention of Elizabeth, who was lying in bed, watching them.

"Yeah," Elliot mumbled. He turned to Olivia "You should get some sleep."

"Like that's gonna happen," Olivia said, folding her arms across her chest "I don't think I could if I tried."

"Me neither," Elliot admitted, his gaze returning to the nearly empty parking lot.

Olivia laid a hand on his arm "It's been a long day," she observed "Maybe it would be best if we both tried to sleep," she did feel tired for some reason but knew that she wouldn't feel safe unless Elliot was beside her. And as she watched the faint light from outside drift across his facial features, she knew he needed the rest too.

"What if…" Elliot began, turning to look at her again.

"Brent's in custody," Olivia said reassuringly "No one even knows we're here except Cragen. I know you're worried, I am too, but I think it's relatively safe."

"Relatively is such an objective word Liv," Elliot told her.

"How philosophical of you," Olivia chuckled, giving his arm a gentle tug "Please, just lie down next to me?"

Elliot conceded, getting up and following Olivia to the empty bed. She turned down the covers and they slid in. She snuggled up against him and he wrapped his arms around her.

Olivia tried to stifle a yawn as just how wrong her earlier statement about not being able to fall asleep had been became clear to her. She lifted her head just long enough to give Elliot a soft kiss "I love you," she whispered before laying her head back down.

"I love you too," Elliot whispered. He held her as her breathing evened out. He realized just how exhausted she must have been. In the other bed, he could hear the even breathing of both the girls and knew that they too had fallen asleep.

Elliot felt his eyelids growing heavy but every small noise in the room kept him awake, his mind trying to make sure that his body was prepared to defend his loved ones against anything that might happen.

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Olivia's eyes popped open the next morning early. Charlotte was standing beside the bed. Olivia smiled at the little girl "Morning sweetie," Charlotte's little face was scrunched up. Olivia sat up "What's wrong?" she asked gently.

Charlotte shook her head and looked away, turning back to the other bed. Elizabeth had already gotten up and was nowhere to be found. "Bad dream," Charlotte said quietly "Woke up alone."

Olivia scooped the child into her arms as she stood up "Well, you're not alone," she reassured her as she peered around the room, hoping to find some clue to where Elizabeth had gone.

All of a sudden she heard the toilet in the bathroom flush and she nearly burst out laughing. She had been so worried. The sound of the water in the sink reached her ears and she sank back down on the bed as Charlotte snuggled closer to her.

Beside her, Elliot stretched and moaned "What's going on?" he mumbled as he opened his eyes and rolled over to face Olivia.

"Good morning yourself," Olivia smiled as Charlotte turned to Elliot and grinned.

"Morning," she said in a quiet voice.

"Morning honey," he smiled back, reaching out to her. Charlotte scooted over and hugged him.

Just then, Elizabeth emerged from the bathroom "Hey," she said softly as she took a seat at the foot of Elliot and Olivia's bed.

"Lizzie," Charlotte left Elliot's arms in a blaze of pajama clad limbs and wrapped herself tight around Elizabeth "I was worried," she buried her little face in Elizabeth's shirt.

Elizabeth peered over the top of Charlotte's head at Olivia. Her gaze was a nervous one. Olivia just nodded reassuringly at her. Elizabeth turned back to Charlotte, running a soothing hand up and down the little girl's back "I'm okay kid," she smiled softly.

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"He's gonna spend the next twenty five years in prison," Casey assured Olivia as she finished chewing a bite of her turkey sandwich.

Olivia sighed "At least Elizabeth won't have to go through a trial," she said with a shrug.

"Where is she anyway?" Casey inquired.

Olivia took a sip of her decaf coffee and smiled softly "With Brent in jail, she's gone back to school; she wants to see how she does today."

Casey nodded "And where's the little one?" she said with a soft smile.

Olivia's gaze dropped to the café table top "Elliot took her to see Adam," she whispered.

"She's so young," Casey remarked "Do you really think she's ready for that?"

"It doesn't matter," Olivia said flatly "She heard us talking about him and flat out demanded to see him." Olivia put her head in her hands.

Casey reached across the table and patted Olivia's arm "As long as she's got you and Elliot, I'm sure she'll be fine," she assured her friend.

"I hope so," Olivia said wistfully as she pushed away what remained of her salad.

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Olivia returned to the hotel room after her lunch with Casey. Elliot, as expected, hadn't spent too much time with Charlotte at the hospital. Olivia felt a soft smile cross her lips at the sight of Elliot, on the floor, playing with Charlotte and, as Olivia noted, several stuffed animals that were new.

"Hi," Olivia greeted softly, easing herself down on the floor beside Elliot.

"Hi," Charlotte stood up and walked to Olivia, wrapping her little arms around Olivia's neck "Missed you," she murmured.

"I missed you too," Olivia returned the hug.

"Adam don't wanna wake up," Charlotte said sadly.

Olivia looked over at Elliot and he nodded "No change," he said sadly.

Olivia turned back to Charlotte, unsure of what to say. Charlotte hadn't been ready to visit her brother but then again when would she ever be ready? Would she be ready in another month, a year, five years? There was no right answer. Olivia just held the little girl silently.

"When Lizzie coming back?" Charlotte asked finally.

"Soon honey, soon," Olivia assured her.

Elliot looked up at the clock "I'd better go pick her up now," he mentioned as he hauled himself off the floor.

Olivia nodded up at him and offered him a small smile before turning back to Charlotte "Can you introduce me to your new friends?" she asked sweetly.

Charlotte nodded and smiled broadly. By the time Elliot left, the little girl was trying to pronounce the word 'alligator'. Elliot smiled to himself and allowed himself to believe that somehow, they'd be alright.


End file.
